Profession
Study: Only small change in high-risk specialists in Pa. liability crisis years
NEWS IN BRIEF — Posted May 21, 2007
Rising medical liability premiums seemed to have little effect on the number of high-risk specialists practicing in Pennsylvania, a study published in the April 24 online issue of Health Affairs concluded.
The analysis examined the state-run insurance carrier's records from 1993 to 2002. It included data on nearly 50,000 physicians in specialties such as cardiology, emergency medicine, surgery, neurology, and obstetrics and gynecology. Researchers found that an average of 15.5% of specialists left their practices each year from 1999 to 2002, when rates spiked, compared with 14.5% who did so between 1993 and 1998.
Considering new doctors who came into the state, the overall number of high-risk specialists did not significantly drop during the rate hike period. The largest change was an 8% decrease in ob-gyns during that time, the analysis showed.
The study also showed that 0.7% of high-risk specialists switched from major to minor procedures between 1999 and 2002, versus 0.5% in the earlier period. The number of doctors that stopped performing major procedures from 1999 to 2002 was 1.8%, compared with 1.1% from 1993 to 1998.
Pennsylvania Medical Society spokesman Chuck Moran said, "We can't draw any conclusions about why physicians come and go based on numbers. You've got to get down to the grassroots level and ask physicians."
Note: This item originally appeared at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2007/05/21/prbf0521.htm.
