Insurance Companies Get Richer, The Injured Get Screwed
01/31/10 14:18
According to research, medical malpractice
insurance companies just keep getting richer. Since
the turn of the century, the money insurance
companies took in increased by 120% while the
amount they paid out dropped by 15%.
Even more surprising? States with a ‘cap’ or maximum amount recoverable for harm actually experienced an increase in the cost of premiums.
A copy of the complete report can be downloaded and read here.
So, while everyone claims that medical malpractice insurance is getting too expensive and medical malpractice lawsuits are the problem, the real problem appears to be aggressive lobbyists hired by insurance companies are seeking to further pad the coffers and profits of the insurance industry at the expensive of people. And yet, somehow, someway, the Utah legislature is considering LOWERING the damages cap in Utah. Of course, maybe they should look first to who they are serving.... The Utah Medical Insurance Association, one of the largest providers of malpractice insurance in Utah, carries nearly a quarter billion dollars in assets ($230,718,580 as of 2008). Greed, apparently, is good for the insurance companies.
Even more surprising? States with a ‘cap’ or maximum amount recoverable for harm actually experienced an increase in the cost of premiums.
A copy of the complete report can be downloaded and read here.
So, while everyone claims that medical malpractice insurance is getting too expensive and medical malpractice lawsuits are the problem, the real problem appears to be aggressive lobbyists hired by insurance companies are seeking to further pad the coffers and profits of the insurance industry at the expensive of people. And yet, somehow, someway, the Utah legislature is considering LOWERING the damages cap in Utah. Of course, maybe they should look first to who they are serving.... The Utah Medical Insurance Association, one of the largest providers of malpractice insurance in Utah, carries nearly a quarter billion dollars in assets ($230,718,580 as of 2008). Greed, apparently, is good for the insurance companies.
Healthcare Transparency
12/21/09 17:48
At the federal level, debate rages over healthcare
reform. At the local level, still waters run deep.
The legislature created an ‘interim’ committee at
the close of last session to study health care
transparency and improvements. Despite meeting in
secret and also hiding its list of improvements
from legislative oversight committees, word is
leaking out that the interim folks are bent on
making it more difficult to bring suit if you are
injured by medical malpractice. Instead of
transparency and creating a healthcare system that
actually works for patient’s rights, the interim
committee is bent on preserving insurance profit.
So, in the upcoming local legislative session, expect to hear a lot about ‘tort reform,’ very little about transparency and patient’s rights.
In the meantime, you can take some steps: tell your legislator you want a Patient’s Bill of Rights; tell your legislator you want a public system where you can go to find out background information on your doctors, healthcare providers, nurses and hospitals... after all, you can already look up your local restaurant to find out how many times the health department has cited them for violations, shouldn’t you have access to the same information for those who hold your lives in your hands? Which is more important, finding out if Taco Bell left chicken out on the counter, or knowing that surgeon who is about to cut you has been sued for malpractice more than once?
So, in the upcoming local legislative session, expect to hear a lot about ‘tort reform,’ very little about transparency and patient’s rights.
In the meantime, you can take some steps: tell your legislator you want a Patient’s Bill of Rights; tell your legislator you want a public system where you can go to find out background information on your doctors, healthcare providers, nurses and hospitals... after all, you can already look up your local restaurant to find out how many times the health department has cited them for violations, shouldn’t you have access to the same information for those who hold your lives in your hands? Which is more important, finding out if Taco Bell left chicken out on the counter, or knowing that surgeon who is about to cut you has been sued for malpractice more than once?
Protecting the Incompetent
03/01/09 15:10
The
medical malpractice insurance industry again seeks
to shield the physician who negligently ignores
safety in the emergency room (3 out of the last 4
years they tried and failed to push a similar
bill). However, this time around SB0079 attacks
patients and doctors alike. First, SB0079 raises
the burden of proof for patients injured by
negligent, unskilled or poorly trained emergency
physicians by requiring a 'clear and convincing'
standard. Second, SB0079 actually attacks
physicians who dare to offer opinions critical of
their peers. Physicians who testify against other
physicians can be subjected to discipline for
offering their honest opinion and criticism.
SB0079 shields the unskilled, poorly trained or plain negligent emergency room physician with a blanket immunity, allowing such physicians to remain unaccountable and in practice for all but the most horrific deaths or injuries in emergency rooms.
Raising the standard of proof for injuries from "preponderance of the evidence" to "clear and convincing" evidence is a solution looking for a problem. Already, Utah law takes into account the heated circumstances in an emergency room by requiring that physicians exercise reasonable care under those circumstances. Moreover, there have only been a few emergency room cases filed in the last few years. It makes no sense to shield these minority actors from legitimate claims by intimidating physicians who dare to offer critical testimony through potential disciplinary action.
If you find this intimidation tactic legislation offensive, contact your state legislator and voice your opinion. You can find your state representative by clicking here for help finding your district and representative.
SB0079 shields the unskilled, poorly trained or plain negligent emergency room physician with a blanket immunity, allowing such physicians to remain unaccountable and in practice for all but the most horrific deaths or injuries in emergency rooms.
Raising the standard of proof for injuries from "preponderance of the evidence" to "clear and convincing" evidence is a solution looking for a problem. Already, Utah law takes into account the heated circumstances in an emergency room by requiring that physicians exercise reasonable care under those circumstances. Moreover, there have only been a few emergency room cases filed in the last few years. It makes no sense to shield these minority actors from legitimate claims by intimidating physicians who dare to offer critical testimony through potential disciplinary action.
If you find this intimidation tactic legislation offensive, contact your state legislator and voice your opinion. You can find your state representative by clicking here for help finding your district and representative.
Medical Malpractice Crisis? Wrong.
06/02/08 09:07
Yet again, another study indicates that the whole
'medical malpractice crisis' is an overblown
attempt by the insurance industry to support a
crumbling argument for tort reform. Frequently we
are told that physicians are fleeing the practice
of medicine because trial lawyers have caused
malpractice insurance premiums to skyrocket.
Massachusetts has been described by the AMA as such
crisis state, with settlement payments for victims
of physician negligence the fourth highest in the
United States.... Yet, surprise, "[m]ost
physicians paid lower inflation-adjusted premiums
in 2005 than
in 1990." The reality, as always, is that the
insurance companies pump up the malpractice crisis
in order to pump up their own profits.
Study by Health Affairs here.
Study by Health Affairs here.
Defending Trial Lawyers?
07/31/07 21:17
It doesn't happen often, so when it does, time to
draw attention. A recent article on
CNNMoney.com champions the much hated trial
lawyer. Salient points include: Attorneys
represent the last resort of employees
wrongfully terminated or abused in the work
place; Attorneys represent individuals against
the greed of corporations willing to put out
shoddy tires, tainted pet food and toothpaste
and defective difibrillators. The only thing
that keeps the corporate world turning is the
knowledge that, if the corporate world tries
to screw the individual, trial lawyers will be
there to hold them accountable. "Simply put,
what makes transactions possible is the
knowledge that if trust is abused, the abuser
will pay a penalty." Long live the trial
lawyer, long live corporate accountability.
Lawsuit Happy Society?
04/10/07 19:51
According to Utah State Court Statistics
personal injury lawsuits only make up 1% of
the total cases filed in 2006 Read
More...