CSMS TALKING POINTS OF MEDICAL MALPRACTICE

CSMS TALKING POINTS OF MEDICAL MALPRACTICE

The legislature must address the shortages of medical liability carriers, the crippling increases and the impact this crisis is having and will continue to have on access to health care.

The crisis is already affecting patient access to care in CT.

Dozens of CT’s OB-GYNs will no longer be delivering babies this year. Many physicians are selecting early retirement or limiting their practice, and some are even leaving the state. Certain specialties, such as obstetrics, family physicians and neurosurgeons are being hit the hardest.

Malpractice insurance cost increases are lower in states with limits on non-economic damages.

Currently, there are 23 states with a cap on non-economic damages including California (MICRA legislation). According to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC), medical malpractice premiums for California rose 167% between 1976 and 2002 compared to 505% for the rest of the country.

The U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services July 24, 2002, report, "Improving Health Care Quality and Lowering Costs by Fixing Our Medical Liability System," found that states with limits of $250,000 on non-economic damages have average premium increases of 12%-15% compared to 44% in states without caps. Furthermore, they have a stable professional liability market.

Fear of increased medical liability creates increases to our health care costs.

Physicians are fearful of being sued and are forced into practicing defensive medicine – ordering more tests and costly procedures to protect themselves. According to an April 2002 Price Waterhouse Cooper’s report, 7% of the increase in health care costs are directly related to defensive medicine – estimated at $50 and $180 billion annually.

Non-economic damages drive increases in premiums.

While there have been a few run-away jury awards exceeding a million dollars in Connecticut compared to other states, the overall effect of national attitudes is to increase the baseline on all injuries.

The primary carrier in Connecticut (CMIC) total payments increased from $19.5 million in 1995 to $50.3 million in 2001. Average payments in 1995 were $230,000 and in 2002 were $460,000. CMIC reported 19 individual settlements of a million dollars or more.

Non-economic damages are based on non-quantifiable impressions of "harm or injury." Without a tangible value to base these types of damages on, jury awards are difficult to assess or predict.

Economic damages such as present and future medical costs, lost wages, rehabilitation, home health care and childcare will continue to be unlimited.

CT has had a substantial decrease in the number of malpractice carriers.
In 2002, Connecticut had 8 carriers writing policies. During the year, St. Paul Insurance Company withdrew from the medical malpractice insurance market leaving 42,000 physicians without coverage. Three companies insuring physicians, MIIX, PHICO and the Frontier became insolvent and a fourth, AHI/SCPIE withdrew from the state leaving hundreds of physicians without coverage. In 2003, the number is now 3 (CMIC, ProMutual and GEProtective).

Why have a $250,000 cap on pain and suffering (non-economic damages)?

A pain and suffering cap continues to make available economic damages and quantifies insurance risk by stabilizing and making more predictable the market thus providing for affordable coverage. Increasingly escalated medical malpractice insurance premiums are making it difficult for many doctors to practice medicine.