Texas Law Sets Dangerous Precedent That Could Increase Medical Errors
A decade ago, an aggressive campaign in Texas to promote Proposition 12, a measure that capped lawsuit damages for medical malpractice, passed by a very slim margin. Because it costly to pursue a medical malpractice claim, the $250,000 award cap established by Proposition 12 effectively prevents injured patients or the loved ones of those killed by medical malpractice from obtaining legal representation. Proponents promised that adopting this so-called “tort reform” would increase access to doctors, improve quality of care and cut healthcare costs. But now, with a decade of results to study, it turns out that the legislation has done more harm than good and sets a dangerous precedent that could see more patients harmed by malpractice with no accountability for those at fault.
The true purpose of malpractice litigation
Suing a doctor, hospital or other medical practitioner or institution for doing harm to patients has two purposes. The first is to compensate the patient that was harmed, or their survivors, for permanent damage done to their health, ability to work or quality of life that would not have occurred had they received adequate medical care. The second, and perhaps more important, purpose is to act as an accountability measure that ferrets out those that do not take patient care seriously, are prone to errors and either need to drastically change their methods to improve patient outcomes or to quit practicing medicine altogether. Imagine a world where you could harm people without consequences. It”s frightening.
Myths about medical malpractice litigation
In order to get dangerous legislation like Proposition 12 passed, special interest groups that advocate on behalf of doctors, hospitals, insurance companies, and other related industries, grossly exaggerated the prevalence of medical malpractice suits. This type of litigation is not on the rise, is not out of control and is rarely frivolous. These are myths spread by special interest groups associated with the medical and insurance industries. In fact, as medical malpractice cases are often difficult to prove, attorneys will only take on cases with merit and a likely positive outcome. What”s more, most medical malpractice cases are settled out of court and so do not waste judicial time and resources (another myth created by tort reform advocates). And, a recent study by Dartmouth health economist Dr. Amitabh Chandra found that medical malpractice judgments have grown at the same rate as healthcare costs proportionally. The study showed that casino online it is the rise in healthcare costs that is responsible for the increase in malpractice judgments since a great portion of compensation relates directly to compensation for medical expenses.
How medical malpractice limits put your health at risk
With no threat of legal accountability, physicians and institutions have no incentive to provide optimal care or to correct faulty processes that put patient health at risk. Watch the short video below to see the negative outcomes that have arisen since the passage of Prop 12.Fortunately, for now, Washington remains a state where victims of medical malpractice can hold those that harmed them accountable for their negligent actions. Contact Rob Kornfeld if you or someone you loved:
- Was misdiagnosed
- Had a delayed diagnosis
- Was not offered appropriate diagnostic tests
- Had treatment delayed
- Was injured as a result of medication errors
- Was subject to any other serious medical error that caused death or permanent injury