profession
Report criticizes Texas liability cap
NEWS IN BRIEF — Posted Jan. 25, 2010
Texas' medical liability cap has failed to reduce overall health care costs, and federal lawmakers would be remiss to look to it as a model for national health system reform, according to a December 2009 study by Public Citizen.
The report by the consumer watchdog group found that the cost of health care and health insurance, as well as spending on diagnostic tests, have increased since 2003, when Texas passed a $250,000 limit on noneconomic damages in medical liability cases (link).
But physicians said the study is flawed and that the cap was never intended to reduce health care costs.
It was, however, supposed to bolster access to care by reducing liability pressures on physicians, said Texas Medical Assn. President William Fleming III, MD. "And that has been accomplished," he said, pointing to a 35% drop in liability premiums and a 30% increase in physician supply in underserved areas.
Note: This item originally appeared at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2010/01/25/prbf0125.htm.
