Malpractice Costs Up 150% Since 1999, Hospitals Say

[Rose Siding]

The cost of medical malpractice insurance in New York City, Westchester County and on Long Island has risen by nearly 150 percent since 1999, creating severe financial strains that have limited patients' access to such specialties as obstetrics and gynecology and made New York a "crisis state" for doctors, according to a report released yesterday by a hospital trade group.
...
Since 2000, the number of insurers providing malpractice insurance to New York area hospitals has fallen to four from six, the association said. It said the New York insurers, compared with those in other states, had had some of the worst financial results, paying out $1.44 in claims for each dollar collected in premiums.

And it said many of the nation's largest malpractice awards, some exceeding $90 million, had occurred in New York City. Although such awards are routinely reduced before the cases are settled, the study listed huge settlements reached in recent years, including one for $50.1 million in Manhattan in 2002 and another for $10.6 million in Brooklyn in 2000.

Both those cases involved children who suffered brain damage while under hospital care.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/01/06/nyregion/06malpractice.html

[tk2kewl]

1. spin... spin... spin

[AP]

2. Since jury awards and settlements probably haven't gone up 150% you

have to wonder where all that money has gone.

Let me guess: to the insurance companies who have been reporting record profits the last 10 or 15 years.

[Just Me]

14. How much have CEO's salaries increased? Like, three hundred fold? n/t

[Bozita]

3. Biggest underwriter of malpractice ins. is owned by GE, ...

... parent corp of NBC, MSNBS, CNBC, and manufacturers of a lot of military stuff.

[Bozita]

9. Name is "GE Medical Protective" -- link

http://www.consumerwatchdog.org/insurance/pr/pr004692.php3

Nation's Largest Medical Malpractice Insurer Declares Caps on Damages Don't Work, Raises Docs' Premiums;


Smoking Gun Document Exposes Insurance Industry Lies


Santa Monica, CA -- The nation's largest medical malpractice insurer, GE Medical Protective, has admitted that medical malpractice caps on damage awards and other limitations on recoveries for injured patients will not lower physicians' premiums.

The insurer's revelation was made to the Texas Department of Insurance (TDI) in a regulatory filing obtained by FTCR. The revelation was contained in a document submitted by GE Medical Protective to explain why the insurer planned to raise physicians' premiums 19% a mere six months after Texas enacted caps on medical malpractice awards. In 2003, Texas lawmakers passed a $250,000 cap on non-economic damage compensation to victims of medical malpractice caps after Medical Protective and other insurers lobbied for the change.

more...

[Name removed]

19. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[MGKrebs]

26. What is the response to this?

This seems like a slam dunk rebuttal. What do malpractice protectors say in response to the evidence?

(I'm asking because I will be working on this here in georgia and I would like to get my chops down, so thanks in advance.)

[merh]

31. Do you have a copy of the Government Accounting Offices

report from '03 or '04 that clearly states that no evidence has been found that supports the myth that doctors are leaving their practices due to the increase of malpractice insurance? It is a good report to have if you are working on the issue.

I have a question, since malpractice insurance is a business expense for docs, isn't that "huge sum" taking into consideration at tax time and doesn't it basically constitute a business write off?

Just curious.


http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/useftp.cgi?IPaddress=162.140.64.21&filename=d03702.pdf&directory=/diskb/wais/data/gao

http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/multidb.cgi

http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/useftp.cgi?IPaddress=162.140.64.21&filename=d03702.txt&directory=/diskb/wais/data/gao

[damntexdem]

4. And the cost of pharmaceuticals is up much more than that.

How about pill reform?

[HuckleB]

5. This is ridicuously amateur.

Instead of actually studying why, they run to a few headlines that do nothing but cloud the picture.

[struggle4progress]

28. Unfortunately, without opposing LTTE, this "amateur" tactic works.

[Rican1]

6. What's the percentage decrease in the practice of love by OBGYN's N/T

[lcordero]

7. and it's very fair that malpractice insurance has risen

Accountability has to be practiced everywhere from top to bottom.

[kohodog]

8. Hell, my property taxes have gone up more than that.

$3000 in 1999, $5500 this year.

Tax cut my ass.

It's the Insurance companies, stupid. That is where we need reform. What has happened to the profits of Health Insurance Companies since 1999? I'd love to know the figure. Most Doctors I know are more upset with them than malpractice insurance.

[lastknowngood]

10. Medical insurance for us sheep is up over 70% and drugs are

up over 80%. Remember the Medicos are pushing us out of the system at a fast pace so they can only insure the good risks. Dr's income has gone up some as well but the real thiefs are the insurance companys.

[teryang]

11. Do they have Neurological Injury Compensation Act

This self insurance pool for Hospitals and MDs who deliver babies, allows obstetricians to deliver babies and avoid the price gouging by malpractice insurers. It covers a window of time proximate to birth (the period of greatest risk) during which if the infant sustains a "birth related neurological injury" an award is made for special damages on a no fault basis and only limited general damages are provided for. Reasonable attorneys fees are provided on an hourly cost basis with some restrictions on total compensation.

The reason these particular tort judgements are huge is because of the huge cost of providing care and attendance for a profoundly brain injured infant FOR THE REST OF THEIR LIFE. A hospital or doctor can save tens of thousands or more in premiums by opting into a NICA pool/trust program. In my state it doesn't provide for negligent acts during the pre-natal or post natal care outside the birth window.

One thing that is not recognized in the tort law debate is that the cost of INSURANCE COMPANY DEFENSE ATTORNEY FEES AND COURT COSTS INCURRED TO DEFEND PROVIDERS WHO ARE NEGLIGENT ARE NOT LIMITED IN ANY WAY BY PROPOSED LEGISLATION AND NEVER HAVE BEEN. THE SKY IS THE LIMIT FOR FEES AND COSTS DEFENDING NEGLIGENT PROVIDERS AND OTHER CORPORATE TORT DEFENDANTS. CERTAIN FORTUNE 1000 COMPANIES WILL SPEND (even millions) WELL IN EXCESS OF WHAT A PLAINTIFF WOULD SETTLE FOR. THUS THE DESIRE IS TO CREATE AN UNEVEN PLAYING FIELD WHERE THE PLAINTIFF IS ALWAYS AT A DISADVANTAGE REGARDLESS OF THE MERITS OF HIS SUIT. IT IS SUCH AN EXTENDED UPHILL BATTLE WITH HUGE RISKS AND COSTS TO PLAINTIFFS ATTORNEYS WHO UNDERTAKE A MALPRACTICE SUIT. PLAINTIFF'S LAWYERS DON'T GET A FEE IF THEY DON'T WIN AND WIN BIG BECAUSE OF RESTRICTIONS ALREADY PLACED ON THEM BY PRE-SUIT INVESTIGATION REQUIREMENTS AND THE RULES OF OFFER AND COMPROMISE. THEY TYPICALLY ADVANCE THE COSTS OF SUCH LITIGATION. THE RISK OF PENALTY FOR "FRIVOLOUS SUITS" ARE SEVERE. SO THIS ARTICLE IS COMPLETE BULLSHIT.

REMEMBER IF THE CORPORATIONS ARE ALLOWED TO LIMIT TORT RECOVERIES AND ATTORNEYS FEES THE COST OF CORPORATE NEGLIGENCE AND MEDICAL NEGLIGENCE WILL BE SHIFTED ONTO THE INJURED AND THE TAXPAYER. THAT'S YOU.

Oh yes, the right of access to the courts by the people is a constitutional right. Republicans spout off this tort reform bullshit ad infinitum until one of their loved ones is seriously injured by a negligent corporation, doctor, or other person insured by a corporation. Then they express profound disillusionment about how their rights have been curtailed by the republican legislators and politicians they have been voting for all of their adult lives. "This can't be, how can they do this to me?" I've heard it over and over again.

Also, think of how greedy and stupid the defense lawyers and client must have been to lose a case for 90 million dollars. One can easily avoid such an outcome by making a reasonable offer of compromise. So the defense attorneys and corporations make huge mistakes in litigation when the client has been negligent AND IT GETS BLAMED ON THE PLAINTIFFS AND THEIR TRIAL ATTORNEYS.

[prolesunited]

12. Guess what the result of capping awards will be?

Each of our lives will be boiled down in economic terms. If your cost of appropriate treatment exceeds $250,000, why would they even bother?

Well, let's see, it will cost $150,000 for a transplant operation, $50,000 for hospital care and $35,000 for years of antirejection drugs and followup care

Hell, let's just let her die. It's much cheaper.

[Just Me]

15. Isn't that being ANTI-LIFE?

You're only "worth" as much MATERIAL as you possess?

Well, hell,...if the "lives" that we can all agree actually exist are only worth the material/money that they can offer to keep themselves alive,...then, the majority of us should just DIE. And, since all the unborn possess NOTHING,...why bother with giving women a choice,...let's just DEMAND ABORTION!!!

Those "unborn" fail to bring with them the demand to PAY to live. Therefore, neither women or the "unborn" should have a choice about existence. Either you can pay,...or you should not live.

[leesa]

13. It's the INSURANCE that is up.

[AuntiBush]

16. And 2003/2004 was a record-breaking year for...

Insurance companies! My lawyer was so mad about this, he pounded his fists yesterday!

Plenty of sites on this: Try MythBusters
PDF FILE from Google: http://www.centerjd.org/free/mythbusters-free/InsProfitsHighestEver.pdf

Or the HTML version: http://64.233.167.104/search?q=cache:LA-XDBMwdpYJ:www.centerjd.org/free/mythbusters-free/InsProfitsHighestEver.pdf+2004+record+breaking+profits+insurance+companies&hl=en&ie=UTF-8

Added Bonus: FBIC Insurance Rates HALL OF SHAME: http://www.badfaithinsurance.org/indexdetaillist.html

[wellst0nev0ter]

18. As Harry Truman Once Said

How many times must the doctors be hit on the head until they realize who's holding the bat?

[yinkaafrica]

17. What? 25% of the suits involve 2% repeat offenders

Ban these fuckers from medicine.
My God, it is the same fuckers again and again.

[BrendaStarr]

20. Factcheck.org on medical malpractice suits and cost of the insurance

In case anyone needs some facts, talking points.

http://www.factcheck.org/article133.html

Notice they are deriding what they call defensive medicine.

That sounds like when Bush sneered at "frivolous safety features" that some wanted for the space shuttle.

My mom in law had a defensive second colonscopy as they could not find out why she should be so anemic a few years back. The second one did find the cancer. In Bush's perfect world of no defensive medicine she would be dead today.

[SoCalDem]

21. Angst, and just plain bad ju-ju up 150% since 2001 n/t

:)

[proudbluestater]

22. NY Times still shilling for the regime, huh?

Several folks happened by Kerry's old forum and were talking about the "frivolous lawsuits" driving up the cost of health care. I "listened" attentively through a few notes and then finally, I had to ask. What percent of the health care dollar actually goes to malpractice insurance?

Suddenly, no more conversation.

Because it is less than 1% of the health care dollar. Why do the Rethugs who drink the Kool Aid NEVER bother to get a second opinion on the crap they are fed daily? We need massive deprogramming.

[saigon68]

23. NY Times is on its KNEES servicing the Medical community

They would LOVE -- no law-suits whatsoever.

[Bridget Burke]

24. Capping awards didn't work in Texas....

The nation's largest medical malpractice insurer, GE Medical Protective, has admitted that medical malpractice caps on damage awards and other limitations on recoveries for injured patients will not lower physicians' premiums.

The insurer's revelation was made to the Texas Department of Insurance (TDI) in a regulatory filing obtained by FTCR. The revelation was contained in a document submitted by GE Medical Protective to explain why the insurer planned to raise physicians' premiums 19% a mere six months after Texas enacted caps on medical malpractice awards. In 2003, Texas lawmakers passed a $250,000 cap on non-economic damage compensation to victims of medical malpractice caps after Medical Protective and other insurers lobbied for the change.

www.consumerwatchdog.org/insurance/pr/pr004692.php3

Bush as Governor was a Good Friend of the insurance industry, but his successor is even worse. Someone floated a rumor about Governor GoodHair's sexual adventures recently; the real story should be his truly obscene relationship with the insurance lobby.

[sendero]

25. What?

Isn't that about 9% per annum? Isn't that in line with the increases in all medical expenses? Where's the freaking beef?

[UpInArms]

27. costs are probably related to the scams that the insurance industry

is doing:

http://cbs.marketwatch.com/news/story.asp?guid=%7B2608DD41%2D71B7%2D43E0%2D90A6%2D8FD8CF562AE8%7D&siteid=mktw

Marsh exec pleads guilty in Spitzer probe

SAN FRANCISCO (CBS.MW) -- New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer said Thursday that a former Marsh & McLennan senior executive pleaded guilty to fraud charges as part of an investigation into bid-rigging and steering in the insurance industry.

Robert Stearns, who until recently was a senior vice president and broker at Marsh (MMC: news, chart, profile), admitted that between 2002 and 2004 he told insurers to submit uncompetitive bids for business and presented those bids falsely and fraudulently to clients, Spitzer said in a statement.

Shares of Marsh lost $1.17, or 3.6 percent, to $31.53 in afternoon trading.

Stearns, 40, pleaded guilty to the crime of taking part in a Scheme to Defraud in the First Degree, a felony which carries a maximum sentence of 4 years in state prison, Spitzer added.

New York's top cop sued Marsh, the world's largest broker, in October for allegedly rigging bids and accepting so-called contingent commissions for steering business to favored insurers.

<snip>

On March 19, 2003, Stearns emailed a colleague, William McBurnie, about a Chubb Corp. (CB: news, chart, profile) account that was up for renewal.

"Chubb have quoted lead renewal at ... $135,000. Would you please have AIG provide a B," Stearns wrote.

Several minutes later, Stearns followed up with more specific directions: "A 'B' would be a quote from AIG which is higher in premium and more restrictive in coverage thus supporting the Chubb quote," he explained.

A week earlier, Stearns emailed Marsh broker April Greenwood asking her to get an inflated quote from Zurich so that the incumbent insurer St. Paul Travelers (STA: news, chart, profile) could hold onto an account.

"Can you get me a B from Zurich. Client will be binding with St. Paul at $270,000 all coverages as expiring. $325,000 should work," Stearns wrote. Later that day, in another e-mail, he reiterated to Greenwood that Zurich should "issue a B on the lead at $325,000 or more."

...more...

[bemildred]

29. Quality of medical care declines 60% since 1999.

We might as well live in a third world country.

[underpants]

30. This article is COMPLETE BS! It is about premiums NOT lawsuits

On average, it said, the hospitals have been billed for malpractice premium increases of 27 percent a year for five years.


Does the tort reform legislation even MENTION malpractice premiums?

NO!

[durablend]

32. There's ALWAYS going to be an excuse

Even if they completely ban all malpractice lawsuits they'll just claim the reason costs are going up are that people are sick (or some other lame excuse).

[Coventina]

33. Is it possible that HMOs and the lousy care they provide

increase the amount of malpractice suits?

I mean, I personally know one person who was killed by Cigna and their lousy penny-pinching ways.

I don't blame families a bit if they decide to sue over such things.

The HMOs operate in bad faith and expect to get away with it?

[bemildred]

34. Of course not. What are you, a Communist?

Crappy medical care has NOTHING to do with it. It's all greedy lawyers.
</sarcasm>

Isn't it interesting that greedy lawyers are bad, but greedy HMOs are good?

[Coventina]

36. maybe I am... what's it to ya?

:D

Yes, I find it VERY interesting that lawyers are coming under INCREASING attack, when becoming a lawyer is fast becoming one of the last ways a person can obtain a degree that enables them to amass a PERSONAL fortune. At the same time, corporations are getting more and more protections....hmmmm....

[Deja Q]

35. The number of quacks getting hired has probably gone up 150% too.

x(