[balrog666]

One of the problems that will need to be corrected is the fact that malpractice lawsuits are the only real check on incompetent doctors.

[bballbob]

That's because the peer review process is a joke. No one involved in the "review" is going to be too critical because they might be next. How about the many instances where medical licenses have been revolved in one state, but the doctor just goes somewhere else and starts all over again. I think you can improve the system(s) without paying extortion to the lawyers.

[LoneRangerMassachusetts]

One of the problems that will need to be corrected is the fact that malpractice lawsuits are the only real check on incompetent doctors

On the other hand malpractice suits feed the ever-growing population of predatory lawyers hustling frivolous cases.

It’s time for the losers to pay all the costs of both plaintiff and defendant. I once got a notice that I was part of a class action suit against a hardware company started by a kid who couldn’t figure out how to setup a ZIP drive. The class action asked if I wanted to participate or be removed from the suit. I would have had to travel to Pennsylvania (600 miles) to remove myself from the suit where the case was filed. Otherwise, I had to notify the plaintiffs attorneys to include me, which would just take a call to their Boston office. The notice was clearly lopsided in favor of the interests of the plaintiff’s ATTORNEYS. The whole system is set up for their benefit. None of these pickpockets ever put their lives on the line for the people. They prey on the wealth of productive businessmen and the public trough. I await the day they screw things up so badly that the indifferent rise up and tar and feather the bastards.

[jettester]

What is really crazy is the fact that a large portion of our population believes that health care is a right (I'm paging through the Constitution now, paging, paging...). Health care used to be considered a service that was offered for those who needed it (and could pay for it) and now it has become something entirely different. Why can't we return to a truly capitalistic version of medicine where the free market decides? The reality of Review Boards is that one of the best that money can buy is the one of "free and informed choice" by the consumer. Licensing and practice fees could more than offset a forum which monitors credentials as well as welcomes and includes patient feedback, concerns or judgements.