Recent News
I-LAW: Voters sent clear message in election – restore fairness to courts
Results of recent judicial elections in southern Illinois demonstrate that voters don't want personal injury attorneys "ruling the court system," according to a legal reform advocate. Illinois Lawsuit Abuse Watch executive director Travis Akin pointed to Fifth...
Feldman: Indiana leads in malpractice reform
When making the decision to apply to medical school, I told my father, a revered family doctor in South Bend for more than 40 years, that I had anxieties about becoming a doctor. He told me that doctors are human and like all human beings, physicians make mistakes. He...
Tort Reform’s Impact On Health Care Costs
SUMMARY: The American Action Forum (AAF) found multiple state medical liability reforms reduced total healthcare premiums by 2.6 percent. Employer healthcare costs also declined by 3.5 percent. If these results were replicated on a national level, the nation’s insured...
Doctor Malpractice Premiums Remain Flat Amid Obamacare ‘Tumult’
Medical malpractice premiums are flat, and even falling in some cases, even as healthcare costs rise, particularly for Americans purchasing individual policies on exchanges under the Affordable Care Act. Medical malpractice premiums remain flat as they have for years...
Measures On Medical Suits, Casinos Nixed; Medical Marijuana Upheld
The Arkansas Supreme Court on Thursday struck ballot issues on medical lawsuits and casinos from the Nov. 8 ballot and upheld a ballot issue to legalize medical marijuana. The decisions were announced in four separate opinions, all unanimous. Medical lawsuits In two...
Athletic Trainer Bill Passes in House, Moves to Senate
Athletic trainers and sports medicine professionals are closer to receiving liability insurance protection while providing care to their athletes out of state. On Monday night, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Sports Medicine Licensure Clarity Act (H.R....
Liability suit seeks change to informed consent
A case before the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania could have major implications on how physicians obtain informed consent prior to a surgery. At stake in Shinal v. Toms, is whether a patient’s informed consent to surgery can be predicated on information provided in part...
The healthcare policy changes spine surgeons would make
Here three surgeons discuss the policy changes they would make to improve the current healthcare industry landscape. Ask Spine Surgeons is a weekly series of questions posed to spine surgeons around the country about clinical, business and policy issues affecting...
13-Years Post-Liability Reform, Texas Hits Another Record in New Physician Applications
Texas continues to be an attractive place to practice medicine. The state's medical board finished is fiscal year last month having received a record number of new physician applications. Some 5,544 new applications were received, up 3% from the previous year's record...
Government Policies May Drive Doctor Shortages in Unhealthiest States
State medical boards, government-protected monopolies, and jackpot juries could be keeping doctors out of Arkansas and Mississippi. Two of the country’s unhealthiest populations live in states experiencing extreme doctor shortages, according to reports by two...