How would poor Little Johnny Edwards survive if someone derails his gravy train?
I have heard attorney's say that medical malpractice is an insignificant cost. They are just calculating the direct costs. I am in my 37th year of being a doc so I think I know a little bit about it. When a physician sees a patient with a symptom (any symptom) no matter how trivial, it could mean one of a thousand things. Just check any lay person's publication on how to diagnose yourself! Well what would you rather have going into court; a perfect history and physical with a well thought out explanation of why the particular diagnosis was made or a million tests, x rays, scans etc.? There is no contest here. My wife had a lipoma on her leg. No question about it. She saw her doc as it was bothering her. A $750 MRI was followed by a trip to a surgeon and a pathologist read it as, guess what - a lipoma! Over $1000 for a silly lipoma!