Malpractice Insurance

A Medical Nightmare
Post by David Held

Medical Malpractice Insurance is a form of insurance that most doctors carry. Doctors, in general, make mistakes daily; from misdiagnosing a condition to a fatal delivery. In case of an accident all doctors try to protect themselves against a lawsuit by carrying malpractice insurance. A problem that has risen, given to the increasing rates of medical malpractice insurance, is there are less specialized doctors in a given region. Meaning, since insurance is so high, doctors cannot afford to practice, thus there are less doctors in many areas of our country. An article says, “Whopping medical malpractice premiums are forcing many doctors to stop practicing high-risk specialties, such as brain surgery, orthopedic surgery, and delivering babies.” This could potentially be devastating to patients, but at the same time it’s not the doctor’s fault. The insurance companies are encroaching upon the doctor’s ability to perform. We all know that there are always risks involved with any procedure. In America we sue for everything even when faced with the risks in advance. The problem becomes one where the patients are not being cared for by the best professionals available, those without malpractice insurance, or at all, thus no lawsuit can develop if anything happens to the patient.

President Obama also recognizes that lawsuits against doctors have become a major issue. Recently, Obama listened to the Republicans and created pilot programs which are suppose to reduce the number of lawsuits against doctors. If successful, these programs will also help reduce the cost of health insurance for many Americans as most of our insurance money goes to covering the doctors’ malpractice insurance. The details for these programs have not been released, nor has the budget for the projects. Hopefully in the near future healthcare can be free and doctors will not have to constantly worry about getting sued.

Sources #1, #2, #3