Americans demand liability reform in new poll

Main Category: Public Health
Article Date: 15 Apr 2004 - 0:00 PDT

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Fully 72 percent of Americans want Congress to pass a law that limits non-economic damages in medical liability cases, according to a new nationwide poll published by the Health Coalition on Liability and Access (HCLA), which counts the AMA among its members.

The results show an even greater majority of Americans (82 percent) think the medical liability crisis is pushing good physicians out of medicine and is threatening the availability of quality medical care.

Most Americans support specific reforms to guarantee payments for lost wages and medical costs, but also to limit non-economic damages, which have sent physician insurance premiums - and the overall cost of health care - through the roof.

Comprehensive medical liability reform is the top legislative priority for the AMA at the state and federal level. The AMA's recent advocacy efforts in support of its state and specialty partners have yielded significant legislative victories in several states, most recently in Iowa.

"Every day in this country, patients are denied the health care they need because the medical liability lottery has forced doctors out of medicine," said Christian Shalgian, Chairman of HCLA. "The situation is getting worse - and the time for action is long overdue. We are committed to working with Congress and the Administration to keep the need for health care liability reform at the forefront of the national debate."

The poll of 1,000 adults was conducted in March 2004.

Source: The American Medical Association

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