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WILLIAMS: Ms. Doroshow, the other side of this, what good is a free and open system that allows, in cases of wrongdoing, penalizing doctors to the point of not having doctors to go to because of what everyone has to pay for this?
JOANNE DOROSHOW, INSURANCE REFORM ADVOCATE: Well, you know, there's no question that in certain areas, doctors are being price-gouged, and it's outrageous, and it's -- the causes and the solutions to this lie exclusively with the insurance industry.
The only state that really has enacted strong insurance regulatory reform happens to be California. That's why rates are more moderate in that state. That particular law, the cap on damages that was discussed, which is something now that President Bush wants to impose on the entire nation, has had absolutely catastrophic consequences for many families with horribly injured children due to medical errors who now are only getting a fraction of the money they need to take care of these children.
And then you look at a state like Missouri that has the exact same kind of lawsuit restrictions that are in effect in California and have been in place for a number of years. That state is having the worst insurance crisis in the state's history.
Clearly, limiting the rights of catastrophically injured children to get adequate compensation is not going to solve an insurance problem the doctors have.
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