Medical Liability Monitor: High Rates Remain Unchanged
The annual survey of medical liability insurers showed rates little changed from 2014 to 2015, with clear inconsistencies from state to state that can be attributed to a given state’s medical liability climate.
The Medical Liability Monitor survey showed that 71 percent of insurance premiums did not change, while 17 percent of rates rose and 12 percent fell – indicating that the plateau of high rates continues.
Internists experienced an average premium increase of 0.6 percent in 2015, while general surgeons saw a 0.2 percent average rate decrease, and obstetricians/gynecologists experienced an average 0.5 percent increase.
Most staggering are the differences in liability rates based on states that have passed liability reforms and those that have not.
For obstetricians/gynecologists, premiums ranged from $214,999 in southern New York to $16,240 in central California, where the gold standard of liability reform, MICRA, was passed 40 years ago and reaffirmed by voters in 2014.
“Various factors influence premium amounts, including the overall legal climate and the rate of insurer competition in each state,” said Susan J. Forray, principal and consulting actuary with the Milwaukee office of Milliman, a global provider of actuarial services.
“The dollar amounts themselves are a function of the litigation environment [and] the cost level of medicine or living within the state,” Forray said.
Without uniformity in medical liability laws across the country, patients and physicians will continue to see extremes in the cost of insurance, and ultimately, costs of care.
To read more about the annual Medical Liability Monitor survey, click here.
Nevada Supreme Court Upholds Liability Reforms, Keeps Health Care a Fair Game
While the lack of medical liability reforms in many states has reduced access to quality medical care to a game of chance, Nevada Supreme Court justices have upheld the state’s reasonable limits on non-economic damages.
The decision by the Supreme Court overturned a previous ruling that found the $350,000 limit on non-economic damages to be unconstitutional.
The decision was unanimous, with the court determining that the state statute in question does not violate a plaintiff’s constitutional right to trial by jury or deny a plaintiff equal protection under the law. The court also ensured that the limit on non-economic damages was in aggregate and did not apply separately to each plaintiff and defendant.
The limits have effectively been in place for over 10 years, since the passage of a ballot initiative known as “Keep Our Doctors in Nevada” was approved by voters. The reform measure also limited sky-high contingency fees charged by personal injury attorneys.
While visitors to the state take their chance at the roulette table, the decision by the state Supreme Court ensures patients access to care and a fair medical liability system is a sure bet.
To read more about the decision in Nevada, click here.
Lack of Liability Reforms is Bad for Business in Florida
In a recent analysis on the cost of defending medical liability claims, Florida emerged as the state with the highest loss rate – adding to the burden of patient health care costs and negatively impacting the state’s economy.
The average cost of settling a claim or defending one that results in a no-fault judgment for the plaintiff has reached $8,190, nearly 2.9 times the national average.
“Basically, Florida is one of the most litigious states in the country,” said Giselle Lugones, Executive Vice President of Aon Risk Solutions, one of the lead authors of the study. “A strong legal community for plaintiffs with a lot of money behind it results in an overburden of frivolous claims,” she added.
The study found that these factors led to a medical liability “incubator” within the state, forcing doctors to leave or retire early, and in turn, limiting options for patient care.
With the number of claims increasing in Florida at an average annual rate of 3.3 percent since 2011, analysis of the study concludes that while “the immediate victim of a medical malpractice claim would appear to be the medical community, the costs for patients may be just as severe.”
To read more about the impact of Florida’s harsh liability climate on industry and patients, click here.