Med mal reform update

The PopTort blog is reporting that the Center for Justice & Democracy has just published two new articles that warn of some serious problems with state-based litigation “alternatives.” CJ&D Legal Director, Amy Widman, also just published an article in The Circuit, the online edition of prestigious California Law Review, which analyzes some of these proposals, concluding: None of the litigation alternatives currently proposed enhance patient safety while ensuring that injured patients are compensated. Limiting patients’ access to courts and compensation for their injuries does nothing to increase patient safety. Reducing financial accountability on hospitals when errors occur will likely negatively impact patient safety. And allowing hospitals to control the fact-finding process surrounding medical errors also reduces transparency and, ultimately, accountability. While there is much to praise in the health care reform bill, awarding grants to reinstitute litigation “alternatives” that have been already been tried and rejected by both courts and patients makes little sense. For more on this story go to The PopTort.