Congressman Lord Boustany stated in his Republican response tonight:
"We need to establish tough liability reform standards, encourage speedy resolution of claims, and deter junk lawsuits that drive up the cost of care."
Well, there's a smidgen of truth in that ... for medical providers. Texas passed medical tort liability reform back in 2003, and the insurance premiums for Texas medical providers have decreased, at least for those associated with the Texas Medical Liability Trust:
"TMLT has now reduced rates for Texas physicians six consecutive years since the passage of House Bill 4 and Proposition 12 in 2003," said Bob Fields, president and CEO of TMLT. For the first five years, rates were reduced across the board for all specialties: 12% in 2004; 5% in 2005; 5% in 2006; 7.5% in 2007; 6.5% in 2008. For 2009, all specialties will receive a rate decrease but the reduction will vary by specialty and territory with an average decrease of 4.7%. According to Fields, the cumulative premium savings realized by policyholders will exceed $275 million since January 2004.
Hmmmm ... no wonder Congressman Lord Boustany likes medical liability reform. After all, he was sued for medical malpractice himself three times. But the proponents of medical liability reform are missing the point of health care reform ... health care reform is to lower the costs of medical care for patients, not the malpractice insurance costs for medical providers.
While the medical malpractice insurance premiums may have gone down for some medical providers, thanks to medical liability tort "reform" passed by state legislatures, the cost of health insurance for us common folk has risen across the nation, as well as in Texas.
Then again, no wonder the Republicans are pushing this classic bait-and-switch ... as the Republicans traditionally raise more money from health professionals than do the Democrats, although that has changed with the ascendance of the Democratic Party, and the shameless fundraising prowess of the Blue Dogs over the last few years. |
