Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report Examines Developments Related to Medical Malpractice in Two States

Main Category: Litigation / Medical Malpractice
Article Date: 29 Aug 2005 - 16:00 PDT

email to a friend   printer friendly   opinions  

The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report looks at recent development related to medical malpractice in two states. Summaries appear below.

• Illinois: Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D) on Thursday signed a law that caps noneconomic damages in medical malpractice cases at $500,000 for cases against doctors and at $1 million in cases against hospitals, the Chicago Sun-Times reports (Herman, Chicago Sun-Times, 8/26). Under the law, the state Division of Insurance will have more authority to review medical malpractice insurance rates and reject those considered unreasonably high. The agency also will create a Web site to inform doctors about their malpractice insurance options. The law mandates that insurers disclose the information and formulas used to set their rates. In addition, the state Department of Professional Regulation will double the number of malpractice investigators on staff and set up a malpractice Web site that will include information about doctors. The law also aims to curb costly lawsuits through the "Sorry Works" pilot program, which encourages doctors to offer apologies and financial settlements in malpractice cases, rather than go to court (Suhr, Chicago Tribune, 8/25). The law is expected to be challenged in court, as some trial lawyers have said that the cap on noneconomic damages violates the state Constitution, the Sun-Times reports (Pallasch, Chicago Sun-Times, 8/26). The U.S. Chamber of Commerce called for more legal reform to bring "fairness and balance" to the medical malpractice system, although some Illinois lawmakers are focused on passing insurance regulations that address physician payments, the Tribune reports (Parsons, Chicago Tribune, 8/26).
  
  
• West Virginia: Malpractice premiums for staff physicians at the Marshall University School of Medicine and the West Virginia University School of Medicine should be reduced by more than half under a new insurance agreement with the state Board of Risk and Insurance Management, the Charleston Gazette reports. The plan is an alternative to a proposal to have the schools self-insure, according to the Gazette. BRIM will continue to insure the medical schools under the plan, which will include a new $250,000 individual liability deductible. Currently, BRIM offers "first-dollar coverage" on malpractice claims, the Gazette reports. To pay for the deductibles, WVU and Marshall will set up escrow accounts of $1 million and $500,000, respectively. WVU's current annual premium of $10.8 million should be reduced by 65%, and Marshall's current annual premium of about $5 million should be reduced by 58.4%, according to the Gazette. The schools should see a combined savings of about $10 million annually under the new plan. BRIM Executive Director Chuck Jones said the agreement "is an acceptable alternative to self-insurance" (Kabler, Charleston Gazette, 8/24).

"Reprinted with 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 . © 2005 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.

• Additional
• References
• Citations