By Zach Krings
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. – Tort reform has been hotly debated in the current health care reform issue, but what exactly is it?
Tort reform allows a patient to sue his or her doctor for wrongdoing. However, there are restrictions on what the doctor can be sued for, and how much money the person can win in a lawsuit.
But watch out. This will most likely cost you more money at your next appointment. If your doctor expects something is wrong, then he or she will run more tests than necessary to save face from malpractice and avoid a messy lawsuit.
This has come to be known as “defensive medicine,” as the doctor is not just diagnosing the patient, but also defending against malpractice liability.
“We really need [tighter restrictions on] tort reform,” said Dr. Carl Shrader of the Flagstaff Concentra Urgent Care. “I used to deliver babies, and was paying $200,000 a year in malpractice insurance. I gave it up because I was paying more in insurance than I was making.”
Connie Hsu, a Phoenix allergist agrees. She said that she would like to reform the current malpractice rewarding system if she could. The reform might reduce costs for patients, but that doesn’t necessarily mean malpractice insurance will be cheaper for doctors. So they’ll keep running unnecessary tests, and costing you more in the long run.
“You don’t get rich being a family doctor,” said Shrader. The practice of defensive medicine not only hurts the doctor financially, but it hurts the patient as well.
