Not to pick a fight here or a start a flaming war, but medical malpractice lawsuits are NOT what drives up health care cost. In fact, numerous independent studies have been done on this very subject and medical malpractice payouts accounts for 0.55 % to 1 % (depending on the study) of the total health care cost.
If you look at examples like California, it has the most draconian limits on the rights of patients in medical malpractice, there is a cap of $ 250,000 on non-economic damages. Despite of that the average premium for malpractice insurance is $ 35,000 (obviously higher for high-risk medical fields like OB/GYN, neurosurgeons, etc), more than 8 % higher than in states with no cap. In fact, insurance premiums for doctors increased by 190 % over the 12-year period following the cap implementation and health care cost increased by 343 %. Hmmmh, interesting!
I think this is a very sue-happy society and there are lawsuits that make me cringe. However, when you look at how many frivilous law suits actually move forward, it is a miniscule amount but of course those law suits get dragged into the media and tort reform proponents have a hayday with it.
I can tell you from first-hand experience that trying to bring a law suit against a medical professional is an uphill battle! In 2003 my then dentist while doing dental work drilled a hole into my sinus cavity. Of course, I had no clue and was wondering why in the following year my health went downhill with infections, excrutianing migrane headaches, compromised immune system, etc. 15 months and a gazillion tests (nothing was found by any medical doctor) later, finally another dentist who had asked for my file and my previous x-rays (taken before the initial treatment and 2 weeks after) found that not only was the treatment completely unnecessary but there was no hole in my sinuses before the treatment and 14 days after there was one. Two dental experts looked at the records and x-rays and said obvious malpractice.
Sounds like a pretty clear cut case, right? Not so fast! There is a statute of limitations of 12 months from the original treatment, compliments of President Bush, sometimes this will get overturned when it is not detected in those 12 months. My lawyer wanted to take the case but it was nixed by the senior partners in his firm who said it is an uphill battle and the chances are 30/70 to prevail.
I ended up paying $ 27,000 in medical and dental bills out of pocket, my insurance company shelled out $ 57,000 to get this jerk dentist's screw up fixed. It is not much of a consolation that that dentist was sued by another patient 2 years later and his license was suspended for doing exactly the same to several other patients.
In my opinion what is driving up the health care cost is the unparalled greed of insurance companies and the pharmaceutical industry. When you look at who is doing best financially even in hard times, it's always the same.
Why is it, that the cost of the SAME drug is 3 to 5 times higher in the US than in other countries? Whereas advertising of prescription drugs to the general public is not allowed in other countries, US Drug Companies spend billions of $$ in marketing, ads in magazines and TV commercials. Turn on the TV, look in magazines, every second commercial or ad is for another drug. WTH do they need to market to the general public? Well, because they know it works.
I have heard from numerous doctors that patients will come into their office, basically already self-diagnosed themselves and ask for a specific drug. I understand that many doctors are between a rock and a hard place, they want to give the best care possible but they also know that patients will just leave and go to the next doctor who WILL prescribe the drug that the patients ask for. And doctors are not only there to help, they also run a business.
We are so brainwashed by the pharmaceutical industry that we think we need a pill for EVERYTHING. People want to get a "quick fix" and have a blind believe in the effectiveness of any given drug, whereas a lot of conditions could be taken care of, if they would just stop eating junk and started exercising, or quit smoking or drinking. Don't get me wrong, there are cases where drugs save people's lives but I think billions and billions of $$ are spent in overprescription of drugs which in turn cause other side effects that then have to be treated with different and more drugs.
I don't know how many times I have heard from people with kids who bring them into the doctor's office asking for an antibiotic and they only have a cold. And I don't know how many times I went with my kids to a doctor and was routinely prescribed an antibiotic "just in case". Just in case, WTH???? You don't give an antibiotic just as a precaution. There is a reason why now there are strains of bacteria that have become immune to antibiotics, resulting in higher and higher health care cost.
New drugs are rushed through the FDA approval process just to later find out, geeh, it either kills people or has serious side effects and health risks that result in enourmous additional health care cost.
And all of that (plus some other reasons), my friends, is the reason for the explosion of health care cost. Medical malpractice lawsuits are just a drop in bucket compared to everything else.
Okay, off my soapbox now.
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