President Obama, in his address to a joint session of Congress tonight, stated that “defensive medicine” does contribute to unnecessary costs in healthcare and will now explore options for medical liability reform. The American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS) and Congress of Neurological Surgeons (CNS) applaud the President’s inclusion of this key element as lawmakers move forward with an overall healthcare reform plan.
“It is absolutely crucial that a discussion of, and plan for, meaningful healthcare reform in this country includes concrete measures to improve the burdens of medical liability. Surgeons are drowning in a sea of lawsuits and escalating insurance premiums. It truly is impeding patient access to care and our ability to save lives,” comments Troy M. Tippett, MD, President of the AANS. “We wholeheartedly agree with President Obama’s statement, ‘We need to put patient safety first and let the doctors focus on practicing medicine.’ It is time that the issue of medical liability reform is addressed and resolved. This alone will be a major step in reducing the cost of healthcare.” In fact, recent figures estimate the overall costs of defensive medicine at an astounding $210 billion per year.
P. David Adelson, MD, President of the CNS adds, “As the voice of the nation’s neurosurgeons, we urge the President and lawmakers to include as a component of health system reform, reasonable limits on non-economic damages and other proven medical liability reforms which we believe will hold down defensive medicine costs, weed out frivolous lawsuits, keep medical liability premiums down, and most importantly preserve patient access to care.”