Pennsylvania Physicians Concerned About Renewal Of Medical Malpractice Insurance Subsidy Program
Main Category: Litigation / Medical MalpracticeAlso Included In: Primary Care / General Practice; Health Insurance / Medical Insurance
Article Date: 19 Sep 2008 - 10:00 PDT
| Patient / Public: | ![]() |
|
| Health Professional: | ![]() |
5 (1 votes) |
| Article Opinions: | 1 posts |
Physicians in Pennsylvania are concerned that the state's Medical Care Availability and Reduction of Error fund, which provides doctors with subsidies for malpractice insurance, could expire this year as lawmakers debate changes to the state's health care system, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.
Gov. Ed Rendell (D) and state House Democrats have refused to renew the abatement program until the Republican-controlled state Senate agrees on a plan to expand health coverage to more state residents. Meanwhile, state Senate Republicans have said they will not reauthorize the Pennsylvania Health Care Cost Containment Council until the abatement fund issue is resolved. MCARE is scheduled to expire in November.
Physicians across the state have expressed concern that if the abatement program is not renewed before lawmakers adjourn for the fall recess, the program's expiration could lead to permanent malpractice insurance premium increases. Chuck Moran, a spokesperson for the Pennsylvania Medical Society, said, "We're not certain what would happen, but there is the ever-present threat that doctors might leave the state in favor of places with lower insurance premiums," adding, "For (independent) physicians, it comes down to simple business math."
Chuck Ardo, a spokesperson for Rendell, said, "We certainly believe that the MCARE extension should be done, but also believe that uninsured Pennsylvanians deserve as much consideration from the commonwealth as do doctors," adding, "If we can add a 25-cent levy on cigarettes to benefit doctors, we can certainly add an additional dime, and tax cigars and smokeless tobacco, to benefit the uninsured" (Toland, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 9/16).
Reprinted with kind permission from http://www.kaisernetwork.org. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at http://www.kaisernetwork.org/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork.org, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation.
© 2008 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.
|
Please rate this article: (Hover over the stars then click to rate) |
Patient / Public: |
or |
Health Professional: |
Any medical information published on this website is not intended as a substitute for informed medical advice and you should not take any action before consulting with a health care professional. For more information, please read our terms and conditions.
Contact Our News Editors
For any corrections of factual information, or to contact the editors please use our feedback form.
![]()
Please send any medical news or health news press releases to:
| Back to top | Back to front page | List of All Medical Articles |
| Privacy Policy | Terms and Conditions | © 2010 MediLexicon International Ltd |




