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The true fix to Healthcare is in Tort reform

By
Real Estate Broker/Owner with Miller Homes Group

The human body is the most complex thing in the universe by most estimates. Given that, it is apparent that you can't have a fixed way of looking at treatment. What works on me, won't work on you, so fluidity should be encouraged. Treatment should be administered by need and not by what's paid for by some plan.

While the system we have appears broken, it really is just flawed. I believe that the flaw comes from years of building in costs to handle lawsuits and other legal battles resulting from treatment. A few years ago 20/20 had a special about pediatric brain specialists all along the gulf coast getting out of the business because almost every death resulted in a law suit. A young person would be injured in a car wreck or something similar and the surgeon would do everything possible to save the child only to fail and get blamed.

Every new medicine goes through an extensive review by the FDA before it is introduced. Then after millions of doses are despised someone dies and we have class action suits everywhere. Every cure has the potential to hurt someone else. Yes it's terrible, but should we never bring another new treatment to the market? People demand better medicine and treatment at a better price, so something has to give. I lost my Dad at 54 to cancer from smoking and working in a paint booth at GM. We sued no one, he made his choices and our world was enriched while he was here with us.

The true fix to Healthcare is in Tort reform. If the FDA approves it then, law suits should not be allowed unless it is clearly subscribed in the wrong manner. If we learn that a medicine heals 1 million but hurts or kills 10 people, then the patient should be told of the risk factors and decide on his own.
Putting everything under Government control will not fix anything. With immediate tort reform, costs could be forced down. I know our Government officials on both sides of the isle are funded by these lawyers that make the big bucks on these lawsuits.
Of course if a Surgeon is grossly negligent he needs to be held accountable, but things have gotten out of hand to the point that Doctors are not doing procedures for fear of being sued. When people are dying because of the fear of a law suit, you have a big problem. The simplest of surgeries now requires a battery of tests that are largely for legal reasons. Billions of dollars are wasted running tests to comply with mal-practice issues, because of miniscule percentages that can't be avoided anyway.
I can't even imagine being a Doctor and having to refuse service based on the fact, I might get sued.
Our entire system of medical care is set up on a defensive mode of operations instead of attacking disease and illness, the way it should be.

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Posted by

Terry Miller

Miller Homes Group

Tyler Apartment Locator

Comments (16)

Terry Haugen STAGE it RIGHT! 321-956-2495
Stage it Right! - Melbourne, FL

Tort reform only stands to benefit the malpractice companies.  It wont address the fact people are denied health insurance by the industry.  It won't address the fact that the insured are denied benefits.  It won't address the fact that the under insured have to pay large amounts of money out of pocket.  It won't address the fact that 22,000 people in this country die every year for lack of health care.

Sep 08, 2009 07:25 AM
Jon Budish
Resident Realty - Fort Collins, CO

Any real reform must include tort reform. When a large amount of money goes to lawyers, the costs are passed on to the consumer in the form of higher healh care costs, resulting in higher health care insurance premiums. This is economics 101.

Sep 08, 2009 07:48 AM
Jane Penttinen
V.I.P. Mortgage - Tucson, AZ
NMLS #222178

Tort reform is a big part of the problem.  I don't think we will see much to fix that part though, since many in congress are attorney's.

Sep 08, 2009 07:54 AM
John Secor
EXIT Real Estate Results - Winter Springs, FL

Terry - I've already debunked this myth, read my blog (or Steve's) on the very same subject.  The bottom line is medical malpractice costs amount to about 1.5% of all health care expenditures annually and defensive medicine about 3% annualy.  Add them together (4.5%) and anyone can deduce that med-mal suits and cost of defensive medicine is not driving insurance rate increases which average 15-30% and more annually.  But don't believe me, check out the CBO reports yourself (links on the other posts mentioned above).

Sep 08, 2009 07:55 AM
Carl Stars
Sutton Group About Town Realty - Burlington, ON

This health care debate is unusall in the fact is everyone agrees people need help , its just  figuring out how to get it done. We have health care in Canada and yes we have very high taxes. However I had a diagnoses of a blood disorder  and have had several tests in the cancer clinics and in the last 5 years have had two minor operations . All I had to do is swipe my health care card . I by no means am a socialist in fact I have supported the cdn taxpayer federations because we pay very high taxes compared to my friends I have in Nashville and Michigan. that being said Tort reform is a given. However we have to help our fellow man. I know America will solve this problem the debate has just got too big.  Our system needs improving as well as we are only ranked 28 in the world. An interesting post  and it appears you  have done much research. At the end of the day the harsh reality is people need help and yes the bill does have to be paid by the masses.

Sep 08, 2009 09:36 AM
Mike Frazier
Carousel Realty of Dyer County - Dyersburg, TN
Northwest Tennessee Realtor

Terry,

I really doubt if the lawyers who make our laws will buy into tort reform. I agree though, thats the way to start fixing healthcare.

Sep 08, 2009 09:41 AM
Terry Miller
Miller Homes Group - Tyler, TX
Miller Homes Group and Tyler Apartment Locator

I realize tort reform would only be a start. While malpractice insurance takes up very little of the costs, I just wonder what we are doing to keep our butt covered in the way of needless medicine and tests, in order to keep the figure down. Tort reform is where I would start, but hardly where I would finish.

Sep 08, 2009 09:54 AM
Hugh Krone
Weichert Referral Associates - Hamburg, NJ
Realtor, Sussex County NJ

John ,

There is nothing wrong with starting with a 4.5% savings. Find a few more savings like that and before you know it you are talking real savings. Long journeys work better with small consistent steps.

Sep 08, 2009 11:02 AM
Bonnie Vaughan
Scranton, PA
CNE SFR - Buyers/Sellers - Lackawanna & Surroundin

Terry,  I agree with Hugh.  Starting some where is better than trying to overhaul the entire system.  Allowing insurance companies to compete across state lines with lower health care costs.

 

Sep 08, 2009 01:54 PM
Mike Saunders
Retired - Athens, GA

Terry - Tort reform is just one of several approaches that we need to take. BTW - JS debunked nothing. He just wants total government control of health care. We also need transportability, the ability to sell health insurance across state boundaries, true cafeteria style choices, pure catastrophic insurance, tax reform for health care costs, vouchers for the truly chronic uninsured, stronger patient rights and no total denial of health insurance for pre-existing conditions (i.e., should be able to get coverage for a heart attack even if had cancer, or for an accident even if heart condition, etc.)

Sep 08, 2009 03:39 PM
Brian Griffis
Realty Choice - Springfield, MO

Good list Mike, I guess you will be tuning into Obama tonight.  Sounds like just what he is talking about.  The only problem with tort reform is that people who are truly injured may not get the compensation they deserve.  Sure, there are abuses, but there are with anything.  People still should be able to be compensated if they are injured, bottom line.  The way to get away from defensive medicine isn't tort reform, it is by paying doctors by quality vs. quantity of care.  So many tests are run because the more tests the doctors do, the more they get paid, and they often have interests in imaging centers, clinics, etc.  There have been tests done (sponsored by the insurance companies) to pay doctors based not on how much they do, but patient outcomes, and guess what, the number of tests decreased dramatically and the patients were better off, go figure. 

Sep 09, 2009 01:26 AM
John Secor
EXIT Real Estate Results - Winter Springs, FL

Mike - tort reform as a health care cost reduction is absolutely debunked.  You're also totally wrong about what I want but then again, being wrong is often a conservatives forte.

Bonnie - Mike's plan pretty much overhauls the entire system but I'm sure you agree with him too.

Hugh - OK, lets enact tort reform, look at the 40 or so states that have done it to some degree.  No consumer health care cost reductions (except doctors Med-Mal insurance), the same huge rate increases and the same discriminatory practices.  Yes, fewer lawsuits and smaller settlements but guess who pockets the 3-5% savings.  Hint: not the consumer.

ALL - Question: why are conservatives doing the bidding of the health care lobby?  Answer: to protect their profits.  The US ranks about 29th in the WORLD in infant mortality rate, 27th in life expectancy, 12th in doctors per capita and FIRST in per capita health care spending.  Personally, I think the most prosperous nation on the planet should be first in the formers, not the latter but that's just me.

Sep 09, 2009 01:40 AM
Mike Saunders
Retired - Athens, GA

Brian G.  -tort reform does not necessarily eliminate the ability of people to sue and get reasonable compensation. It needs to focus specifically upon nuisance and other unreasonable suits as well as eliminate unreasonable compensation. Malpractice insurance is, for many doctors, one of the biggest single expenses that they have, annually. And, in the states that have extremely liberal malpractice awards, there is a doctor migration outwards.

John S. - again, you have debunked nothing, you have shown that it accounts for 5% of the cost of health care in the U.S. That puts it somewhere between .8% and 1% of the GDP (since healthcare is between 1/6 and 1/5 of the U.S. GDP).  And the majority of recommendations made are tweaks to the system, not a total reform. They offer truer and more alternatives than this so-called public option and insurance exhange (where all plans will have to look alike). Some of the suggestions, such as health insurance across state lines, have been proposed almost annually but have been either shot down in committee (most recently by democratic controled committees) or faced democratic filibuster. The biggest piece of reform in there is medical malpractice reform, followed by vouchers (oh yeah, I forgot, liberals don't like vouchers).

As for ranking 27th in life expectancy (which is skewed compared to that of other countries), it is continually increasing. The U.S. does have a higher death rate due to lifestyle, i.e. the U.S. has a higher death rate from automobile accidents than almost all the countries in Europe. It also has higher death rates from various other activities. These are factored in to the estimated lifespans.

Sep 09, 2009 09:16 AM
John Secor
EXIT Real Estate Results - Winter Springs, FL

Mike - you're reaching again.  5% of total health care costs annually are combined expenditures for Med-Mal costs and defensive medicine, that number has stayed the same for about the last 12 years.  Ask yourself this: if Med-Mal and Def Med expenditures are the same year over year, why have health care insurance rates increased between 15-30% annually (and more) if the main problem is lack of tort reform?  The answer is simple: tort reform has NOTHING to do with driving down rates.  Let it sink in Mike.  I know it's hard to part with a GOP talking point but this dog won't hunt.

Sep 09, 2009 09:40 AM
Steven Nickens
Hawaii Life Real Estate Brokers - Wailea, HI
R(S)GRI ABR, Maui Real Estate Hawaii

Aloha Terry,

I am in agreement with you, that is the major problem.  To bad everyone in Washington is a Lawyer.  Can you talk to some one who can over haul corruption in Washington.  Let me know how it goes.

Steve

Sep 09, 2009 10:37 AM
Kent Anderson
Coldwell Banker Resort Realty, Sandpoint, Idaho - Sandpoint, ID
from Schweitzer to the Lake

Tort reform is absolutely mandatory!  Not only would it impact Health Care, it would impact all facets of our society.  Living in a litigious environment is insanity.

Sep 09, 2009 04:30 PM