Category Archives: Medical Malpractice

Report: Congress Should Focus on Curtailing Medical Errors, Not Patients’ Rights

Written On March 9, 2010 By Bob Kraft

According to an update of the National Practitioner Data Bank released recently, fewer medical malpractice payments were made on behalf of doctors in 2009 than any other year on record. This contradicts claims by some that medical malpractice litigation is to blame for rising health care costs. Last year was the fifth consecutive year the [...]

Posted in Insurance Information, Medical Malpractice, Tort Reform

Poor Ratings for 20% of U.S. Nursing Homes

Written On March 8, 2010 By Bob Kraft

As reported by USA Today one in five of the nation’s 15,700 nursing homes have consistently received poor ratings for overall quality, an analysis of new government data finds. More than a quarter-million patients live in homes given another set of low scores within the past year, according to data released by Medicare, which first released [...]

Posted in Medicaid, Medical Malpractice

Warning: Hospitals May Be Hazardous To Your Health

Written On February 24, 2010 By Bob Kraft

An estimated 48,000 people died in 2006 after developing sepsis or pneumonia during their hospital stays, according to a study published in this week’s edition of Archives of Internal Medicine. Such infections forced patients to spend an extra 2.3 million days in the hospital and cost $8.1 billion to treat, the study found. This was [...]

Posted in Medical Malpractice

Texas Medical Malpractice Suits Have Almost Disappeared

Written On February 11, 2010 By Bob Kraft

Here’s a short, “in-your-face” statement about medical malpractice in Texas by Ms. Joanne Doroshow, Executive Director of the Center for Justice & Democracy:

No offense to my GOP friends and their one big health care idea – i.e., “tort reform” — but who wants to walk into a hospital these days knowing that there is [...]

Posted in Medical Malpractice, Tort Reform

Mediators Object to Texas Law on Patient Billing Disputes

Written On January 27, 2010 By Bob Kraft

The Dallas Morning News reports that a Texas law that allows patients “to see a mediator for…unexpected hospital bills” requires the intermediary to “decide whether a physician or hospital is acting in ‘bad faith’ during the mediation process.” But, “the law is vague on what constitutes bad faith, mediators say,” so they “are reluctant to participate.” [...]

Posted in Medical Malpractice

“Tort Reform” Won’t Fix Health Care

Written On December 22, 2009 By Bob Kraft

In an op-ed article in the Baltimore Sun, attorney Wayne M. Willoughby makes a convincing argument that “tort reform” is not the solution to high healthcare costs. Here are excerpts from the article:
For months now, national Republicans and their media supporters have attempted to divert the health care debate away from improving access to quality [...]

Posted in Health Insurance, Medical Malpractice, Tort Reform

Senator Seeks Financial Details From Medical Groups

Written On December 10, 2009 By Bob Kraft

As reported in the New York Times, Republican Senator Charles Grassley has sent letters to the American Medical Association, the American Cancer Society and 31 other disease and medical advocacy organizations asking them to provide details about the amount of money that they and their directors receive from drug and device makers. This inquiry may [...]

Posted in Medical Malpractice, Political and/or Judicial, Prescription Drug Claims, Product Liability or Medical Devices

Maybe a New Day for Doctors’ Pay

Written On November 9, 2009 By Bob Kraft

Robert H. Frank, an economist at Cornell University, has written an interesting article for the New York Times regarding money earned by physicians. The gist of the article (rather densely written as you would expect from a professor of economics) is that one reason health care costs are so high is that doctors are paid [...]

Posted in Health Insurance, Medical Malpractice, Tort Reform

“Tort Reform” Is a Desperate Distraction From Health Care Debate

Written On November 9, 2009 By Bob Kraft

This article was written for the Huffington Post by Anthony Tarricone, president of the American Association for Justice. Here are excerpts:

Those opposed to real health care reform are flailing to come up with real, alternative solutions to our current crisis. With all the talk of death panels, government takeovers, and rationing of care, now tort [...]

Posted in Health Insurance, Medical Malpractice, Tort Reform

Increasing Risk, Hurting Patients — Malpractice Caps

Written On November 3, 2009 By Bob Kraft

Forbes Magazine has an interesting article about medical malpractice lawsuit caps, and how that idea is bad for patients. The article is written by Shirley Svorny, a professor of economics at California State University, Northridge, and an adjunct scholar at the Cato Institute. Here are excerpts:
A new Congressional Budget Office report estimates that a set [...]

Posted in Health Insurance, Medical Malpractice, Tort Reform

Medical Malpractice Insurers: Time to End Their License to Gouge

Written On October 30, 2009 By Bob Kraft

Here’s an interesting opinion about one reason medical malpractice insurance premiums are so high. This is from one of the contributors to the Huffington Post:
In 1945, Congress gave the massively powerful insurance industry an astonishing gift. It bestowed on them the freedom to do what would be illegal in every other industry (save, strangely, Major [...]

Posted in Health Insurance, Insurance Company or Government Misconduct, Medical Malpractice, Tort Reform

Tort Reform Is Not The Answer

Written On October 29, 2009 By Bob Kraft

Tort reform is not the answer — that’s the headline of an editorial in the Des Moines Register. The editorial lays out the arguments in favor of tort reform as a way to save money on health care, but comes to this conclusion:
The truth is some Americans are injured by health-care workers. They contract infections [...]

Posted in Health Insurance, Insurance Company or Government Misconduct, Medical Malpractice, Tort Reform

Battle Over Legal ‘Reforms’ Has Been Costly to Families

Written On October 19, 2009 By Bob Kraft

The Houston Chronicle has a good editorial about recent insurance “reforms” in Texas and across the nation. The gist of the editorial is that these reforms are hurting, not helping, average consumers. Here are excerpts:
For 20-plus years, the insurance industry, aided by tobacco interests, polluters, developers and the medical industry, have been engaged in a [...]

Posted in Health Insurance, Insurance Company or Government Misconduct, Medical Malpractice, Tort Reform

Tort Reform – Not a Health Care Panacea

Written On October 14, 2009 By Bob Kraft

An editorial in the Salt Lake Tribune provides insight into the current debate on the effect of medical malpractice on the costs of health insurance. The editorial puts things into perspective by pointing out that the total savings if all medical malpractice claims were to be eliminated would be only ½ of 1% of the [...]

Posted in Health Insurance, Medical Malpractice, Tort Reform

Health Care Issues: Medical Malpractice Lawsuits

Written On October 9, 2009 By Bob Kraft

The Richmond Times-Dispatch has a short article about the heath care debate and the effect of medical malpractice tort reform on the costs of health care. The gist of the article is that the entire cost of medical malpractice lawsuits is less than ½% of total health care spending. Here are excerpts:

A look at key [...]

Posted in Health Insurance, Medical Malpractice, Tort Reform

Medical Malpractice Insurance Companies Earning More Than Ever

Written On October 8, 2009 By Bob Kraft

Here’s an astonishing statistic released by the American Association for Justice this week: The 10 biggest medical malpractice insurers have average profits higher than 99% of Fortune 500 companies!
Here is the full press release from the American Association for Justice:

As Congress debates nationwide health care reform, a new analysis reveals malpractice insurers have long-played a [...]

Posted in Health Insurance, Medical Malpractice, Tort Reform

Medical Malpractice Not to Blame for Rising Health Care Costs

Written On October 7, 2009 By Bob Kraft

A panel of experts, speaking at Georgetown University, has declared that tort “reform” of medical malpractice lawsuits is not the solution to the current health care crisis. As many previous studies have detailed, this panel stated that medical malpractice accounts for only 2 to 3 percent of health care costs. So eliminating medical malpractice lawsuits [...]

Posted in Health Insurance, Medical Malpractice, Tort Reform

The Real Reason for “Excessive” Medical Tests

Written On September 29, 2009 By Bob Kraft

Today’s Dallas Morning News has an editorial regarding medical testing that is relevant to the current health care debate. In my experience, “excessive” medical testing has more to do with medical professionals wanting to profit from the tests than with the defensive medicine so often mentioned by proponents of tort reform. That doesn’t mean the [...]

Posted in Medical Malpractice, Tort Reform

Surgical Sponge Cases to Test Time Limits on Texas Medical Malpractice Lawsuits

Written On September 28, 2009 By Bob Kraft

An article in the Austin American-Statesman details two cases before the Texas Supreme Court. The cases will give the Court an opportunity to correct one glaring injustice in medical malpractice law. Many plaintiff lawyers are not too optimistic that our ultra-conservative, pro-insurance Supreme Court will even recognize that there is an injustice, much less take [...]

Posted in Medical Malpractice, Political and/or Judicial

Tort Reform: A Bad Bargain That Won’t Fix Health Care

Written On September 25, 2009 By Bob Kraft

In an excellent blog post at The Huffington Post, AAJ president Anthony Tarricone makes the case that tort reform is bad for Americans and will not solve the health care dilemma. The entire article is well-worth reading, but here are the opening paragraphs:

On Friday, the Associated Press reported that a southern Illinois woman died after [...]

Posted in Health Insurance, Medical Malpractice, Tort Reform