Protect Access to Health Care: Vote Yes on Measure 35
By Melissa Edwards
At the age of 15, I announced to my parents that I wanted to be an obstetrician/gynecologist when I grew up, but five years after launching the medical practice I’d dreamed of, I became part of a statewide trend. Despite never being named in a lawsuit, I stopped delivering babies. Soaring malpractice insurance rates and fear of litigation have forced more than 125 Oregon physicians and midwives to make the same decision. Another 250 say they plan to stop delivering babies within five years.
Physicians in high-risk specialties are being forced to limit essential services, retire early, or leave Oregon altogether. Despite inflated figures cited by Measure 35 opponents, Oregon has a critical doctor shortage. Many believe that only "bad" doctors need to be concerned about being sued. The truth is that 75 percent of all Ob/Gyns will be sued during their careers -- not because they’re bad doctors, but because they provide high-risk services.
• Fewer physicians providing high-risk services means higher health care costs. The skyrocketing cost of medical insurance premiums can be directly linked to the rise in malpractice premiums. As it costs physicians and hospitals more to provide these services, the cost is passed along to everyone. This means higher health care costs for employers and their employees and often results in higher deductibles and co-pays for individuals. Even those who can still afford health care may not find physicians to provide it. Controlling one of the fastest growing costs in health care will help employers and employees by returning wage increases to workers instead of using that money for increased health care insurance costs.
• A $500,000 cap only for "pain and suffering" awards. We do support a cap on non-economic damages or so called "pain and suffering awards". We recognize that there is significant pain and suffering that occurs in cases of malpractice, but we believe there needs to be a fair and predictable way of determining the amount of compensation that is reasonable in these cases. Instead, we are seeing vastly different jury awards in cases where the injury was the same. Under the current system, attorneys are rewarded for asking for ever-increasing sums of money because they get to keep up to 40 percent of the amount awarded. A cap on non-economic damages worked in this state for more than a decade. Since the cap was removed in 1999, jury awards have increased 65 percent while the number of patient complaints has stayed about the same. Before 1999, an award of $1 million was highly unusual. Today, the average demand per claim is $3.6 million. Your medical insurance premiums have risen accordingly.
The future of health care in Oregon depends upon returning fairness and common sense to our medical liability system. Last year 22 states passed tort reform. Oregon must be next! I hope you’ll join me in voting yes on Measure 35 on Nov. 2.
At the age of 15, I announced to my parents that I wanted to be an obstetrician/gynecologist when I grew up, but five years after launching the medical practice I’d dreamed of, I became part of a statewide trend. Despite never being named in a lawsuit, I stopped delivering babies. Soaring malpractice insurance rates and fear of litigation have forced more than 125 Oregon physicians and midwives to make the same decision. Another 250 say they plan to stop delivering babies within five years.
Physicians in high-risk specialties are being forced to limit essential services, retire early, or leave Oregon altogether. Despite inflated figures cited by Measure 35 opponents, Oregon has a critical doctor shortage. Many believe that only "bad" doctors need to be concerned about being sued. The truth is that 75 percent of all Ob/Gyns will be sued during their careers -- not because they’re bad doctors, but because they provide high-risk services.
This crisis affects all Oregonians
• Access to health care has been greatly reduced. Many physicians can no longer afford to practice medicine in Oregon. Our state has lost countless skilled and dedicated doctors in many specialties, and all specialties are reporting difficulty attracting new physicians to their practices. High-risk procedures are especially hard to come by. In fact, a vast majority of Oregon is without neurosurgeons, requiring patients with severe head injuries to be transferred greater distances for trauma care, compromising chances for recovery and survival. You may never expect to need the services of a neurosurgeon, but the truth is that you never know when you or a loved one could suffer a serious head or neck injury as the result of a simple accident. Imagine being told by the emergency department physicians that there is no doctor available to take care of you in your time of need. This type of situation is played out in many parts of our state every day.• Fewer physicians providing high-risk services means higher health care costs. The skyrocketing cost of medical insurance premiums can be directly linked to the rise in malpractice premiums. As it costs physicians and hospitals more to provide these services, the cost is passed along to everyone. This means higher health care costs for employers and their employees and often results in higher deductibles and co-pays for individuals. Even those who can still afford health care may not find physicians to provide it. Controlling one of the fastest growing costs in health care will help employers and employees by returning wage increases to workers instead of using that money for increased health care insurance costs.
Measure 35 provides a common-sense solution:
• Fair compensation for lost wages, future earnings, medical bills and actual expenses in medical malpractice cases. We fully support compensation for the economic costs associated with medical malpractice and would never ask to take away that right.• A $500,000 cap only for "pain and suffering" awards. We do support a cap on non-economic damages or so called "pain and suffering awards". We recognize that there is significant pain and suffering that occurs in cases of malpractice, but we believe there needs to be a fair and predictable way of determining the amount of compensation that is reasonable in these cases. Instead, we are seeing vastly different jury awards in cases where the injury was the same. Under the current system, attorneys are rewarded for asking for ever-increasing sums of money because they get to keep up to 40 percent of the amount awarded. A cap on non-economic damages worked in this state for more than a decade. Since the cap was removed in 1999, jury awards have increased 65 percent while the number of patient complaints has stayed about the same. Before 1999, an award of $1 million was highly unusual. Today, the average demand per claim is $3.6 million. Your medical insurance premiums have risen accordingly.
The future of health care in Oregon depends upon returning fairness and common sense to our medical liability system. Last year 22 states passed tort reform. Oregon must be next! I hope you’ll join me in voting yes on Measure 35 on Nov. 2.
