Liability awards draw concern in long-term care
Large jury awards in skilled nursing and senior care settings are drawing increased attention as health care providers and industry leaders warn of growing pressure on the medical liability environment.
Reporting in McKnight’s Long-Term Care News highlights several factors contributing to higher-dollar verdicts, including expanded use of public data, emerging AI-enabled case development tools, litigation financing, and greater skepticismof ownership and investment structures in health care.
Drew Graham, an attorney at Hall, Booth, Smith, said plaintiff’s attorneys are increasingly pursuing broader liability theories and targeting entities beyond direct care providers. He added that changing public perceptions following the pandemic may also be influencing jury expectations in certain cases.
While these awards are currently less prevalent in skilled nursing than in other healthcare fields, observers warn they can contribute to rising health care professional liability costs that are then passed on to patients. One recent market report projected premium increases of 5% to 20% for health care professionals in senior living and care settings and cited continued pressure from high-dollar verdict activity.
Supporters of liability reform point to measures such as greater transparency around third-party litigation funding and procedural changes designed to reduce “anchoring” of large damage requests before juries as ways to help address the issue.
As medical liability pressures are amplified, health care organizations warn that increasingly unpredictable litigation environments may place additional strain on provider affordability, coverage availability, and long-term access to care.
For more on emerging medical liability trends in long-term care, click here.
Medical liability premiums face traditional and emerging influences
New Mexico’s medical liability climate has shifted between hot and cold in recent years as lawmakers and courts have weighed patient protections against concerns over rising health care costs and access to care.
Now, a recent decision from the New Mexico Supreme Court represents a win for stability in the state’s liability environment.
The court ruled that qualified hospitals remain eligible for New Mexico’s reasonable limits on non-economic damages even when claims are based on the conduct of employed registered nurses. The case stemmed from litigation that argued hospitals should lose those statutory protections because registered nurses are not independently eligible to qualify under the state’s Medical Malpractice Act.
The court disagreed, finding that the hospital’s qualified status – not the employee’s status – controls whether the law’s protections apply.
Patient and physician advocates view the decision as a way topreserve predictability in a state that has delivered mixed signals on liability policy over time. They argue that maintaining reasonable limits on non-economic damages can help reduce claims volatility, support insurance affordability, and preserve access to care.
Click here to read more about the New Mexico Supreme Court decision and its implications for hospitals and the medical liability environment.
Access to maternity care requires workforce and liability solutions
A growing shortage of OB-GYN physicians is limiting access to maternity care in many rural communities, highlighting the pain felt from workforce challenges and liability risks.
In a recent op-ed, Jocelyn Mitchell-Williams, MD, PhD, senior associate dean for medical education at Cooper Medical School of Rowan University, and Vijay Rajput, MD, chair of medical education at Nova Southeastern University’s Dr. Kiran C. Patel College of Allopathic Medicine, argue that the lack of OB-GYN residency programs in underserved states like South Dakota has left patients in a maternity care desert.
The authors also point to another factor affecting access to care: the high cost of lack of medical liability reform. Rural hospitals have closed labor and delivery units because of financial pressures, including staffing shortages and medical liability costs.
Drs. Mitchell-Williams and Rajput write, “We cannot ignore the role of malpractice risk. Obstetrics is one of the highest-liability specialties in medicine. For small hospitals, the financial burden of maintaining obstetric services can be prohibitive.”
Mitchell-Williams and Rajput argue that expanding residency programs is only part of the solution. As Protect Patient Now readers know, advocacy efforts to preserve access to maternity care also require addressing medical liability costs through reasonable limits on non-economic damages. To read the op-ed in full, click here.