03 October 2009
How to Limit the Cost of Medical Malpractice
A weakness of our jury-trial system of justice is its vulnerability to emotional appeals – a tactic well-understood by publicists and advertisers. When it comes to medical malpractice suits, the most lucratively rewarded skill of trial lawyers is not legal analysis or good judgment, but convincing and dramatic argument. The rich fees earned by effective trial lawyers account for their motivation and influence-peddling strength derided by Phillip K. Howard in his op-ed article that appeared in the September 29, 2009 Wall Street Journal, “Why Medical Malpractice Is Off Limits.”
One solution to this distortion of truth-seeking in tragic cases of medical failure might be the institution of a cooperative healthcare-providers insurance fund. When a doctor or other healthcare provider can demonstrate his collaboration and consultation with other professionals, he would be cleared from subsequent liability suits. Any claims would be settled by arbitration before an expert board and its awards would be funded by a “suboptimal care fee,” that all health care providers would pay (presumably at a lower rate) instead of legal liability insurance.
A weakness of our jury-trial system of justice is its vulnerability to emotional appeals – a tactic well-understood by publicists and advertisers. When it comes to medical malpractice suits, the most lucratively rewarded skill of trial lawyers is not legal analysis or good judgment, but convincing and dramatic argument. The rich fees earned by effective trial lawyers account for their motivation and influence-peddling strength derided by Phillip K. Howard in his op-ed article that appeared in the September 29, 2009 Wall Street Journal, “Why Medical Malpractice Is Off Limits.”
One solution to this distortion of truth-seeking in tragic cases of medical failure might be the institution of a cooperative healthcare-providers insurance fund. When a doctor or other healthcare provider can demonstrate his collaboration and consultation with other professionals, he would be cleared from subsequent liability suits. Any claims would be settled by arbitration before an expert board and its awards would be funded by a “suboptimal care fee,” that all health care providers would pay (presumably at a lower rate) instead of legal liability insurance.
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