Physician liability insurance reform

Abstract

Rapidly rising medical malpractice insurance costs are causing reduced access to health care services. Physicians and other health care professionals are limiting or discontinuing high-risk procedures and services to reduce their malpractice insurance cost and potential liability; patients are forced to travel greater distances to obtain these health care services. The cause of the rapid rise in medical malpractice premiums and the effects of the tort system upon these increases continue to be debated among stakeholders. Nevertheless, studies have demonstrated that the current tort system fails in its goals to compensate victims of medical negligence and as deterrence to the occurrence of medical errors. A broad-based approach that includes insurance reform, enhancements to the physician peer review system, a protected system of reporting medical errors, and federally funded studies to determine alternate methods of resolving medical malpractice claims are required to restructure the current medical liability system.