Can Congress Handle The Medical Malpractice Truth?

Public Citizen has just released its 2013 report on the costs of medical malpractice, concluding that medical malpractice payments do not increase health care costs. The “tort reformers” spread lies in their efforts to deny justice to American consumers, but the truth disproves the heartless, baseless and ceaseless rhetoric. Will certain members of Congress continue to buy into the lies, or will truth prevail?

Fact: medical malpractice litigation is not causing soaring medical costs in the United States.

Fact: malpractice payments made on behalf of doctors last year were at their lowest level since the government began tracking them almost a quarter-century ago.

Fact: since 2003, medical malpractice payments have fallen nearly 29% while national health care costs have risen over 58%, clearly contradicting contentions that malpractice litigation significantly increases health care costs.

National and state lawmakers who claim that they’re “fixing” our civil justice system, pointing to medical malpractice litigation as the “problem,” are fixing a “problem” that does not exist. Those lawmakers are misinformed and misguided, and should lay bare the true reasons why their contributors and supporters seek to restrict injured patients’ ability to seek redress in court.

Lawmakers intent on serving their constituents should focus on reducing the errors that lead to litigation, not reducing accountability for the errors.