Recent News
Medical liability premiums steady, but big extremes remain
An annual survey shows caps in some states helped keep rates down, but a higher percentage of premiums rose in 2010 than in 2009. Physicians paid about the same for medical liability insurance premiums in 2010 as in 2009, with 67% of rates remaining stable across the...
Eight ideas for the 2011 Legislature
The General Assembly gathers this week facing a deficit of well over $1 billion. Across-the-board budget cuts are no longer sufficient to bridge the budget gap. Georgia needs more innovative, transformative ideas. The budget would appear to limit the state’s options,...
Loser Pays, Everyone Wins
Texas pushes the British rule on tort reform. Republicans picked up 16 governorships and at least 675 state legislative seats in November, and some of them are using this new running room to get creative. One Governor out of the gate early is Texan Rick Perry, who...
Medical malpractice an inconsistent system
The news that New York faces a current fiscal year budget deficit that could reach $1 billion and a deficit for the next fiscal year that could approach $10 billion is sobering for us all. Deficits of this magnitude will create difficult choices for Gov.-elect Andrew...
OPINION: Alaska’s legal climate far from harsh
Obamacare has been passed with great fanfare, but many Americans, unsure how the massive government program will work for them, are taking to the streets voicing their protests. Personal injury lawyers, on the other hand, are drinking champagne and voicing their...
Health Groups Praise Second Bipartisan Debt Reduction Plan To Include Medical Liability Reform
WASHINGTON, DC – The Health Coalition on Liability and Access today praised the release of a second debt reduction plan to include proven medical liability reforms, such as reasonable limits on non-economic damages. The broad coalition of health groups is pleased that...
Health Groups Applaud Debt Commission Co-Chairs’ Support for Liability Reform
WASHINGTON, DC – The Health Coalition on Liability and Access today applauded the Co-Chairs of the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform for their endorsement of comprehensive medical liability reform in draft proposals of solutions to cut our...
Medical liability: Lawsuit chances take a toll
Our actions are influenced even when the odds are in our favor. So we save receipts (tax audit risk, 1 in 100), change the smoke detector battery (fire-related fatality odds, 1 in 1,235), and think twice about standing in the rain (chance of being struck by lightning,...
Medical groups call to stop tax deduction for trial lawyers
The American Medical Association (AMA) and 90 other medical organizations on Thursday sent a letter to the Treasury Department expressing their opposition to a change in tax policy that would allow trial lawyers to deduct certain litigation expenses. "Changing the tax...
Gingrey & Fleming: Medical Liability Bill Key to Health Reform
Just over three months ago, President Barack Obama signed “ObamaCare” into law — with the promise that the reform bill would lower costs, increase access to quality care and preserve the great tradition of American medical care. Clearly, however, as has become more...