Putting a Cap on Medical Malpractice Damages Is the Wrong Diagnosis
Article provided by Ronald J. Bua & Associates.
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"A $250,000 cap on damages, in my humble opinion, is insulting to our system of justice." Strong words fired across the bow by Senator Bob Casey, a moderate Pennsylvania Democrat, who came out against the possibility of imposing a cap on medical malpractice damages as part of comprehensive health care reform legislation currently under consideration in Congress.
Casey, a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, told CNN chief national correspondent John King, "That is not justice as we have come to understand it." The topic - putting a cap on damages, an aspect of medical malpractice reform favored by some congressional Republicans - was discussed on CNN's "State of the Union."
Those in Favor
Those in favor of pushing for a damages cap claim that it is a necessary strategy to offset the rising cost of insurance premiums; they also claim that doctors fear malpractice suits and feel they must practice defensive medicine, ordering more and more tests and procedures only to avoid the threat of civil lawsuits.
In an earlier interview on "State of the Union," Michigan Democratic Senator Debbie Stabenow countered that argument, stating that damage caps imposed in her state had not stemmed increases in the malpractice insurance rates by doctors.
Those Opposed
Perhaps the most harmful repercussion of a cap is that it is an arbitrary amount assigned to compensate for pain and suffering resulting from medical malpractice. In cases involving significant and permanent injuries, it is not inconceivable that pain and suffering damages would easily exceed $250,000. This means that a proposed cap would, in essence, punish and discriminate against the patients with the worst injuries.
The cap also would make no adjustment for inflation, so as time passes, the arbitrary amount would become more unbalanced and less effective with every passing year.
It Hurts
Placing a cap on medical malpractice damages gives a cold answer to a painful question: Aside from the severity and extent of the injury, how much is the pain and suffering worth? For proponents of this legislation, apparently it is $250,000. This is unfair, and it's bad medicine.
