Obama speaks to AMA, hints at restrictions on malpractice liability
President Obama delivered a speech today before the American Medical Association. He talked about the need for health care reform in many areas including lowering costs of medical procedures. One way this might be accomplished, according to the president, is by putting more restrictions on medical malpractice cases.
Tort reform advocates and malpractice reform supporters have long claimed that the threat of a lawsuit is a major cause of outrageous medical costs. Doctors, in fear of being sued for not being thorough enough, will order dozens of unnecessary tests for their patients. All the excess demand for things like MRI’s and EKG’s drives up the price, they say.
Obama was quick to point out that he doesn’t believe caps on malpractice awards are the solution. He said that this is often unfair to people who have been wrongfully harmed by a doctor’s negligence.
The president did say he will explore many options that will keep patient safety first, but also allow doctors to practice medicine without fear of a medical malpractice lawsuit.
From a personal injury lawyer’s perspective, I believe the consequences of reform should be carefully weighed. It’s good to hear that president Obama is not in favor of placing limits on malpractice awards. All these arbitrary limits do is keep some people from getting the help they need and take the punitive sting away from lawsuits meant to expose a negligent doctor or hospital. Limiting the types of malpractice suits allowed could have a similar effect if not handled correctly.
