The number of malpractice lawsuits filed against doctors and hospitals in Pennsylvania dropped last year for the sixth year in a row.
The total was 1,491, according to a report last week by the Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts - about half the peak of 2,904 in 2002.
Court officials reported that 163 cases last year had reached a jury, and that 133 verdicts - 82 percent - had favored the defense.
The decline has followed legal changes that the legislature cloaked under the veil of weeding out "frivolous cases." One rule required that a doctor file a certificate of merit within sixty (60) days of the original complaint. The Certificate must state that an appropriately licensed professional has supplied a written statement that there exists "a reasonable probability" that the care, skill or knowledge exercised by the defendant fell outside the acceptable professional standard. Another required that the suit be heard brought in the jurisdiction where the treatment was rendered, preventing lawyers from filing in counties where they believe juries will be more sympathetic.
These changes in the law, along with many other legal hurdles, have made it tougher for a victim of medical malpractice to get their case heard by a jury. Many times, law firms will decline a medical malpractice case even when liability is clear because of the significant expense and investment of time that will take to pursue the case. The unfortunate reality is that these legal changes intended to weed out "frivolous cases" actually restrict victims of malpractice from accessing the Court. Unless the malpractice results in a catastrophic or debilitating injury, law firms are not willing to risk the immense amounts of time and resources it will take to pursue the case, leaving the victim without recourse for their pain and suffering.
The overwhelming majority of people seeking legal consultation have serious injuries. Their lives have been disrupted and they cannot work or do the activities which they love. All they want is to have their case heard in front of a jury that will give them fair and just treatment. It is the goal of insurance companies to keep these cases out of the courtroom. If they can make it too expensive or too risky for plaintiffs to bring a case, they do not have to offer a fair settlement.
"Tort reform" and "frivolous cases" are two of the favorite tag lines of insurance companies. Well funded insurance lobbying firms spend millions to create the impression that the court system is ripe with conmen and greedy attorneys that will drive up the cost of healthcare if obstacles are not put in place to stop them. The reality is this couldn't be further from the truth. Although we all are rightly concerned about rising healthcare costs in America, medical malpractice claims are a mere one-fifth of one percent of health care costs. Tort reform has almost nothing to do with rising costs of healthcare, and almost everything to do with making insurance companies money.
Laws that limit a plaintiff's access to the court have lead to greater profits for insurance companies. For example, The Doctors Company, boasts an increase in assets to $3,003,000,000 in 2009 from $1,880,000,000 in 2005, "despite the recent turmoil in investment markets." It is common practice for insurance companies to reap the benefits of laws meant to protect healthcare providers instead of passing the savings on to their clients.
What's more, the "frivolous cases" which hospitals and their insurance companies contend are the cause of rising healthcare costs are unlikely to be brought in the first place. Attorneys will decline to take frivolous cases, if not for ethical reasons, for the simple fact that they will waste resources which could be better spent elsewhere.
It is important to contact your Pennsylvania senators / house representatives and let them know that you are wise to the games played by insurance companies, and that you support the rights of medical malpractices victims. Without your support, insurance companies and their powerful lobbyists will continue to chip away at the rights of injury victims.
Source: Pa. malpractice lawsuits decline again May 23, 2011, Associated Press.
