Ken Gansmann: Tort reform key to health care reform

summit daily ^ | September 12, 2009 | Ken Gansmann

[george76]

about 40 percent of medical malpractice lawsuits filed in America were without merit.

Eighty percent of physicians cite fear of being sued in their decisions to practice defensive medicine.

If we want to try to make health care more affordable, we can't leave tort reform out of the equation...

In the 24 U.S. States with tort reform, their insurance rates have dropped 27 percent in the past five years, and some 15,000 doctors have returned to practice in Texas alone.

[Cheetahcat]

Simple trial Lawyers got their hand in Zeros Pants.

[rodguy911]

Great thread long over due.

[george76]

The Texas Experience Following Tort Reform in 2003

•By 2007 nearly 600 OB/GYN physicians returned to practice in Texas.
•The cost of malpractice insurance declined by an average of 21%.
•Using its medical liability savings, Christus Hospital in Corpus Christi opened a Diabetes Excellence Center and a clinic for the indigent.
•Using its medical liability savings, Driscoll Children’s Hospital in Corpus Christi opened satellite clinics in the border cities of Brownsville and McAllen.
•Using its medical liability savings, Kelsey-Seybold Clinic in Houston installed an electronic medical record system to improve patient care.

http://www.physiciansforreform.org/index.php?id=17

[FrankR]

"If we want to try to make health care more affordable, we can't leave tort reform out of the equation... "

You're right, but a "token" tort reform added to what is now kown as "obamacare" is crap...the Congress is packed with lawyers and they'll just overturn that part once "obamacare" gets passed.

Besides, what good is "tort reform" with socialized medicine? You can only sue the government with their permission, and all of the doctors will then work for the government.

Throw out "obamacare", pass tort reform and the across state lines limitation, and the costs will come down considerably. Competition always lowers costs, and if the insurance companies were competing with other states, they'll lower their premiums.

[JLS]

Actually a key to a health care bill is to QUIT USING THE WORD REFORM. The US has the best health care in the world. Less than 10% of the population is currently not issured according to Obama’s new 30 million number. Those insured are in general quite happy with their coverage.

You don’t “reform” something that is good. You might improve it.

Also some of the 10% don’t want health care insurance. They prefer to self insure.

Additionally, what we spend on health care is our business. Not only do we spend more on health care as a percentage of GDP than the places with state rationed care our percentage is going to grow as we baby boomers continue to age and choose to continue to take care of ourselves.

So how could health insurance or for that matter any good be made better? There are really only two areas price and quality. Since as stated above, Americans like the quality of care they get, we are back to price.

Among the ways to reduce the price of health insurance would be to:

1. Reduce coverage mandates.

2. Increase the supply of MDs and RNs by letting more people in to med school and nursing school.

3. Tort reform as this article suggested.

4. Increased competition by forcing states to allow competition across state lines.

I am sure there are other ways including immigration preferences to RNs and MDs from other countries who want to come here.

[rodguy911]

I'll tell you if Texas ever secedes from the union I'm there.

[applpie]

i would be curious to hear the PATIENTS’ side. i believe this is all about taking care of big business—one side or the other.

based on my nephew’s experience with tort reform in the auto insurance industry it has made it harder for victims with legitimate injuries (someone else’s fault) to sue for anything. Damages have to fit within a very narrow definition in order to sue for pain and suffering and unless you pay your own legal fees, you can’t even get what you did lose because no one is interested in your case on contingent fees (poor people do not have legal fee money sitting around). then if you do sue, you risk losing much of your legitimate settlement to legal fees and to the insurance company for the cost of medical care.

i think this is hooey. don’t hurt the patient. i know more patients who have been seriously wronged (including myself) that never file suits. do something about limiting the fees and go after those trial lawyers or patients that make a living from barely legitimate or false claims.

[parsifal]

Probably a crock of poo-poo. What study found 40% to be frivolous? No cite in the article.

Here is reality:

http://insurance-reform.org/TrueRiskF.pdf.

parsy, who is so tired of hearing the same old nonsense over and over

[parsifal]

All a bunch of BS. Try this:

http://www.texasobserver.org/article.php?aid=2607

parsy, who says quit be a gullible sheep

[Toskrin]

The paper was sponsored by the Americans for Insurance Reform.

From their website, they state that they are a project of the Center for Justice & Democracy.

The website for the Center for Justice & Democracy states:

"The Center for Justice & Democracy was founded by consumer advocates in March 1998. Originally known as Citizens for Corporate Accountability and Individual Rights (CCAIR), the organization was formed with seed money from filmmaker Michael Moore..."

Follow the breadcrumbs. That's about as far from an unbiased analysis as you can get.

[ArchAngel1983]

” I'll tell you if Texas ever secedes from the union I'm there."

Me too!

[parsifal]

You’re right. Most people do not sue for malpractice when it occurs. What all the tort reform shills, liars, and sheep don’t tell you is the really really low cost of tort payouts, and the really really large number of patients killed or maimed.

If they did, people would puke at the very mention of tort reform. Plus we never seem to hear about the greedy doctors. Most Republicans have the notion that “responsibility” is something for welfare moms, not for doctors, bankers, or big business.

parsy, who is disgusted that any conservative would want to tinker with the jury system without knowing the truth

[Toskrin]

parsy, who says quit be a gullible sheep,

Now I have seen the light from this article, which appeared in a magazine prominently sponsored by George Soros. Why are you linking us to "the truth" from Michael Moore and George Soros?

[parsifal]

That’s one reason why you ought to be ashamed of yourself. If liberals, leftists, greenies, etc. have enough sense to see the reality, why the H*ll don’t you and the ?

Go to that link, and read the article. The numbers are from A M Best, not Michael Moore. If the LESS THAN ONE HALF PERCENT of total health care costs don’t get your attention, what will?

parsy, who says quit using the strawman argument and read the friggin facts, please.

[Toskrin]

No one has ever claimed that the direct cost of med mal is bringing down medicine. It is indirect cost of excessive test ordering, driving physicians out of certain specialties, etc. You are using cherry-picked data by liberals with an agenda to make a point.

[parsifal]

Why are you so afraid of it? Are you afraid you might have to admit the liberals are right about something and the republicans just might be wrong. Be a man, or woman, and read the article. I promise you the only thing that will be hurt is your pride when you see how wrong you have been.

I promise you that you will survive. I ought to know. I once believed the tort reform crap, myself. I can’t believe I was that stupid, but I was. The real sin, though, is to continue in ignorance once you have a good reason to see otherwise.

parsy, who says swallow your pride and come to the side of goodness and light

[parsifal]

The data isn’t cherry picked. Read the charts. I think page 29 was best one, but I will double-check. And, no some do say that the medmals are what is costing so much. That “greedy lawyer” stuff. Now, where is the real fight? You are right, it is the cost of “defensive medicine”.

Problem is, no one really knows how much that costs. I have seen estimates of $100 billion to $200 billion or more. The problem is trying to separate out how much of these tests and procedures are out of fear and panic by doctors that they will be sued, and how much is out of doctor’s greed for more income.

For example, the increased numbers of c-sections have been blamed on John Edwards and a lawsuit he won. But doctors get $5,000+ on c-sections instead of regular births. So who is doing what for why? If you go to that link and read down some, you will come to link there to an article by a Dr. Gawande. He went to Texas to see why health care costs there went UP so much AFTER tort reform. Read it. One of the Texas doctors just comes out and admits it is over-utilization by doctors for extra money.

parsy, who says just read the stuff and think about some of this

[rodguy911]

In other words $200,000 per year for malpractice is just fine with you. Here in S.Fla. we have an epidemic of both, a few bad doctors and those who practice without licenses and a bunch of ambulance chasers. We need both to go away and soon.

[parsifal]

I don’t know whether $200,000 is fine or not. Is it for specialists? If so, how much a year are they grossing? Some of these surgeons are scheduling a dozen surgeries a day. At just $5000 per surgery, they can pay malpractice for year in less than one week.

My point is, tort reform ain’t fixing nothing because it is too small a percent of overall costs. less than 1/2 of 1 percent.

Also, why would conservatives want to reduce coverage for the injured to reduce costs for the injurers? It’s crazy.

parsy, who hopes you read the article.