Doctors Seek GOP Push on Bill to Rein in Malpractice Awards
Congressional Quarterly Daily Monitor
January 10, 2003

Acting on complaints from doctors across the country, Republicans in both chambers are pushing for action early this year on legislation to rein in medical malpractice awards.

Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., plans to tell committee chairmen that limits on medical professionals' liability should be a priority for this year.

Frist should face no argument from many committee chairmen. Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee Chairman Judd Gregg, R-N.H., already has told GOP members of his panel that medical malpractice would be high on the list.

…

Doctors and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) attribute the increases to higher jury awards from medical malpractice lawsuits. A 2002 HHS report cited statistics showing the median award in 1999 was $800,000, up 6.7 percent from 1998. It also showed that median malpractice awards surged almost 43 percent between 1999 and 2000.

However, Americans for Insurance Reform (AIR), a coalition of consumer groups, claimed in a study released in October that malpractice payouts had been rising no faster than the overall increase in medical inflation in recent years.

In addition, AIR contended that overall premium levels do not directly track changes in payouts, but are more directly affected by insurers' outlook for the economy and the investment return on money collected from premiums but not yet paid out in claims.

For a copy of the complete article, contact AIR.