Promise of reform
In the next few months expect to hear more about the growing concern that medical malpractice insurance premiums are driving Pennsylvania doctors away. The crisis is felt keenly here because until recently little has been done to cut down on frivolous lawsuits and high jury awards arising from the Philadelphia area. And because most insurance companies who previously were willing to write policies for Pennsylvania doctors won’t. Gov. Ed Rendell has assembled a task to make recommendations for short- and long-term fixes. The group represents physicians, trial lawyers, insurance companies and hospitals.
On the table are topics such as Rendell’s push to siphon the surplus from health insurance companies to pay for malpractice insurance, to capping damages awarded in lawsuits to $250,000, to demanding better policing of bad doctors. Expect to hear much debate as Pennsylvania works toward long-term solutions to a problem everyone thought was corrected last year.
Lawmakers approved a bill to address the medical-malpractice crisis but it did little to ward off a panic in December when again some doctors were cut off completely or sent outrageous bills. The governor’s task force and promises of reform have kept physicians on the job instead of joining walkout protests as seen in other states.
The task force holds out promise that a resolution will be found. And there is promise in that the Pennsylvania Supreme Court adopted two components of the bill and incorporated them as part of the court rules.
Before a medical malpractice case can be filed, it must now be certified by an expert that it is a legitimate claim worth pursuing. This could have a huge impact in cutting the number of frivolous suits, as the Pennsylvania Medical Society claims seven out of 10 suits filed are dropped, dismissed, withdrawn or found in favor of the doctor.
The second rule prevents venue shopping. This means that lawyers can’t dig for a Philadelphia-connection to place a suit before the courts there that historically award high damages. How important is this to bringing down costs? The Pennsylvania Medical Society claims in 2000 the state’s total malpractice pay-out was more than $352 million. Of that, more then $325 million came from Philadelphia.
Neither of these changes has made an immediate impact on insurance rates. But they will help with future premiums.