Court Rulings Increase Lawsuit Abuse, Reduce Patient Care
In separate rulings by both the Maryland and Wisconsin State Supreme Courts, physicians face increased liability risks for failing to present patients with all relevant treatment alternatives and risk. Further, both courts clarified that proof of negligence is not required for plaintiffs to file informed consent claims.
Of course, physicians have a responsibility to properly advise their patients on treatment options and risks, but many fear the rulings could do more harm than good to patient care.
“No physician wants a patient who is uninformed. But giving them a whole lot of technical information they can’t understand or use doesn’t increase choice. It makes the right choice less likely,” said Ruth Heitz, Wisconsin Medical Society General Counsel. In Maryland, medical liability defense attorney J. Mark Coulson said the ruling gives plaintiffs another avenue for recovery even when a doctor has met the standard of care.
“This opens up the area of physician judgment to patient override and gives the jury two bites at the apple on liability,” said Coulson.
These rulings underscore the importance of enacting federal medical liability reform – and why Protect Patients Now is working harder than ever to make sure it is included in health care reform legislation this year. Increasing the number of medical liability lawsuits and holding physicians doubly liable will only lead to a lack of doctors in these states, and a lack of access to care.
To read more about the rulings in Maryland and Wisconsin, click here.
Too Much, Too Soon
In an op-ed this month in the Washington Examiner, Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour argues that President Obama is rushing to pass incomplete health care reform in less time than it took his family to pick out their dog.
Current health care legislation fails to address medical liability reform, and Governor Barbour cites clear results after reforms were passed in Mississippi in 2004. Since then, patient access to care has increased, and medical liability insurance costs are down 42 percent.
In order for health care reform to truly make a difference, medical liability reform must be included to reduce health care costs and ensure patient access to quality medical care.
While pushing for federal medical liability reform continues to be an uphill battle, there is a bit of good news this month from both New Hampshire and Pennsylvania.
New Hampshire Superior Court sided with patients and physicians in preventing state authorities from raiding $100 million in medical liability funds to cover budget shortfalls. And a lower court in Pennsylvania approved a similar suit to proceed to trial to preserve $600 million to help subsidize the burden of costly medical liability premiums. This is good news for patients because skyrocketing premiums force good doctors out of the practice of medicine, and leave patients without the care they need when they need it.
PPN hopes these rulings are a significant deterrent to other state legislatures that are considering dipping into these funds to cover budget shortfalls elsewhere.
Click here to read more about the rulings in Pennsylvania and New Hampshire.
Sign the Medical Liability Reform Petition
It’s not too late to sign the petition to urge Congress to include medical liability reform in any health care reform legislation it passes. Please take a moment to review the petition and add your name to our growing list of supporters.
As you well know, there is widespread agreement among policy makers, opinion leaders, health care policy experts, and the public that our nation’s medical liability system does not serve the needs of patients. Medical liability reform is necessary to bring down health care costs for all patients, reduce the billions of dollars spent each year on defensive medicine, and to ensure patient access to quality medical care.
True health care reform is only possible if it includes changes to our medical liability system.
Click here to sign the Protect Patients Now medical liability reform petition. Thank you for your continued support!
