July 26, 2011 by matray

I was contacted this morning by the Executive Office of the President and the Library of Congress this morning. Both offices were requesting the Medical Liability Monitor's Annual Rate Survey data. Being the morning after the President and Speaker of the House made televised speeches on how they were at… Continue reading...

June 15, 2011 by matray

side note: Here is the No. 1 quandary looming for the medical professional liability insurance industry. If physicians continue the growing trend towards hospital emplyment rather than solo or group practice, who will the traditional MPLI companies have left as customers? I’m amazed at just how quickly physician employment has… Continue reading...

June 1, 2011 by matray

side note: If you are a political junkie and follower of medical professional liability tort reform, this is a contradiction that cannot be ignored. Democrats and trial lawyers have long been in cahoots; Republicans have consistently been on the side of doctors when it comes to tort reform. Thing is,… Continue reading...

May 16, 2011 by matray

By an overwhelming majority, the Republican-ruled Virginia House of Delegates rejected Republican Gov. Bob McDonnell’s veto of a bill that would boost the limit on court awards in medical malpractice lawsuits. The bill represented a compromise among Virginia’s doctors, insurers and attorneys with strong bipartisan support in the House and… Continue reading...

May 9, 2011 by matray

Last month, the National Conference of State Legislators (NCSL) wrote a letter to both the chairman and ranking member of the House Subcommittee on Health expressing “strong, bipartisan opposition to the passage of the latest federal medical malpractice legislation, HR 5, the ‘Help Efficient Accessible, Low-Cost, Timely Healthcare (HEALTH) Act… Continue reading...

May 4, 2011 by matray

side note: Here's an interesting article that I almost missed. It's written by Joanne Doroshow of the Center for Justice & Democracy, and she uses Congressional Budget Office (CBO) numbers to argue that tort reform -- specifically the HEALTH Act being considered in Congress -- would actually increase the deficit… Continue reading...

April 7, 2011 by matray

Declaring New York State “functionally bankrupt” in February, newly-elected Gov. Andrew Cuomo proposed a $132.9 billion budget that would reduce year-to-year spending for the first time in more than a decade. Key to his proposal was slashing the state’s projected healthcare spending, specifically cutting $2.85 billion in Medicaid funding for… Continue reading...

March 29, 2011 by matray

side note: Here is an article that shows the conflict of interest that is inherent in our current system of medical liability, and outlines a reform idea worth closer inspection. While sovereign immunity is doubtful, it is an academic argument worth exploring. It's been a year since health care reform… Continue reading...

March 16, 2011 by matray

side note: Right now, Wisconsin is ground zero in the labor rights fight, but the villain Gov. Scott Walker pushed through a tort reform measure during an emergency session he called during his first week in office. Below is a synopsis by the Wisconsin Trial Bar of the tort reform… Continue reading...

March 7, 2011 by matray

side note: With all the cost-cutting that is proposed at both federal and state levels, this is an especially prescient report. As the healthcare industry, employers and government officials seek to control the growth of health spending, new efforts are needed to develop and refine quality-of-care and other performance measures… Continue reading...