Early good news in Pennsylvania?

One year's data clearly isnt enough to discern a pattern, but it looks as if some of the reforms in Pennsylvania might be taking hold:

Data released this week by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court showed a sharp drop in malpractice lawsuits since reform measures took effect in 2003. The 1,815 suits filed last year was 34 percent lower than the average number of suits in 2000-2002.

A key provision of the reforms was to stop so-called "venue shopping" in which lawyers representing alleged malpractice victims found ways to move cases to Philadelphia, where juries are notoriously sympathetic to victims. Indeed, malpractice cases filed in Philadelphia in 2004 were down 54 percent from the 2000-2002 period the Supreme Court used as a basis point.

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Wow - automated blogger comments

Dont think those existed when i last posted almost a year ago.... Let's see if the word feature blocks them.

Most lawsuits against doctors are over bad outcomes, not malpractice

From South Carolina:

Many physicians acknowledge that their profession has not done enough to reduce medical errors. They argue, correctly, that lawsuits are not the best way to solve the problem: Most lawsuits against doctors are over bad outcomes, not malpractice; and most cases of actual malpractice don’t result in lawsuits, or in any other punitive action. But simply supporting new procedures aimed at systemic errors or wishing the lawsuits would go away isn’t a sufficient answer to the problem. As long as the state operates a self-policing system for physicians, its primary goal should be to discipline that tiny minority of doctors whose carelessness or incompetence truly poses a risk to patients.

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"The best thing I have ever done"

Anecdotal evidence about malpractice driving physician movement from the Yale alumni mag (via pointoflaw.com):

If people tell you tort reform isn't important, don't believe them. The
contrast between practicing in a highly litigious area versus a low one is
incredible. While I knew it was taking a toll on my life and affecting my
practice style, I had no idea how much until I got out here. Using my clinical
judgment without the threat of second-guessing and Monday-morning quarterbacking
not only improves care, but also drastically cuts down on CYA testing. It's
great to be a doctor rather than a fearful technician wondering from where the
next hit is coming. ...

There are 2 other similar stories

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Medical Courts

I'm a little late in getting to this, but an interesting debate is taking place at Legal Affairs magazine:

George W. Bush is pushing an aggressive agenda for reforming medical malpractice law, with a focus on capping the amount of damages patients can be awarded if their doctors harm them. But some advocates suggest a completely different reform: "health courts." These jury-less courts would deal only with medical claims and be administered by trained healthcare professionals. This, supporters argue, might improve healthcare by providing quicker resolution to malpractice suits and limiting frivolous claims.

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