(By the way, I don't necessarily disagree with this).
Q: What are Dr. Dean’s thoughts on the Malpractice Crisis?
A: Click here for a link to Dr. Dean’s Statement on Medical Malpractice Reform, and Comments from the Doctors for Dean Leadership Council about Dr. Dean’s Malpractice Reform plans.
Dean’s Statement on Medical Malpractice Reform
Comments from the Doctors for Dean Leadership Council
Tort reform is clearly a hot issue for all healthcare providers. As a primary care physician who practiced for a decade in Vermont, Dr. Howard Dean understands that we need to make sure we create a very powerful tort reform solution that addresses both the short-term crisis as well as the long-term problem.
Like many things in healthcare, tort reform is a very complex issue with no simple solutions. For example, research has shown (
http://www.weissratings.com/malpractice.asp) that caps on non-economic damages simply are not enough for the complex malpractice crisis we are facing; rather, tort reform needs to take a multi-dimensional approach to truly work in the short and long term. In fact, States that have been successful in keeping premiums in check all have a combination of solutions, which might include caps, pre-trial hearings, expert witness regulations, etc… Additionally, a Federal malpractice cap would likely violate both Federal and State constitutions- making it almost certain that lawyers would challenge a Federal cap- thus keeping any federally based law tied up in courts for several years, while the malpractice crisis worsened.
So when Howard Dean says he does not support a Federal cap, it is because he realizes we can do better than that. What Dr. Dean proposes is that (1) The Federal government pass laws that will decrease errors and improve quality, striking at the core of malpractice problems- treating the disease, not just the symptoms; and (2) The Federal government strongly support states in creating whatever tort reform systems will work in their own jurisdictions- as has been done in some states already (his favorite example is the pre-trial expert panel review systems such as the one enacted in Maine). These are real solutions to real problems, with an understanding of the true complexity of the issues.