side note: As physicians and hospitals continue to adopt new computer systems, care must be taken to avoid new types of errors. In a recent test simulation carried out in 214 U.S. hospitals, more than half of non-fatal errors in physician-entered drug orders failed to trigger a warning. The test simulation allowed hospitals and doctors […]

Side Note: this article from The Hill reports on a bill currently in Congress, aimed at subsidizing malpractice insurance costs for physicians volunteering at community health centers.  Currently, the high liability insurance cost of volunteering makes it essentially impossible for most physicians to volunteer, though many would like to.  This bill would allow physicians to […]

Side Note: The Wisconsin Supreme Court has found that the state must repay $200M that it took out of the state patient compensation fund for malpractice.  This is a victory for the Wisconsin Medical Association, and for health care consumers in Wisconsin.  A solvent patient compensation fund keeps medical malpractice insurance premiums stable, and in […]

Side note: Yet more proof that defensive medicine is costing our health care system big bucks. According to a survey from the Archives of Internal Medicine, 90% of doctors say they order more tests because of fear of medical malpractice lawsuits. With the annual cost of defensive medicine estimated to be $60 billion, reform has […]

Side Note: ISMIE is the largest malpractice insurer in Illinois, and the Cunningham Group is pleased to see that its rates have held steady.  However, we share Dr. Jensen’s apprehension, considering that the results of the Illinois Supreme Court ruling early this year have yet to be seen.  Physicians who want to be sure that malpractice […]

This report, titled “Bad Medicine: A Check-Up On The New Federal Health Law” takes a look at the implementation of Obamacare after 100 days since it was passed. We here at MyMedicalMalpracticeInsurance.com were not too pleased with the final version of this bill, mainly because it didn’t include decent Tort Reform legislation that would help […]

side note: This is welcomed news for doctors who have long complained that the standards put in place by President Obama were to tough to meet in such a short period of time. I have spoken to numerous physicians who have looked at EMR/EHR as another time-consuming hurdle that seems almost impossible to meet in […]

side note: this Wall Street Journal interview with a Case Western law professor addresses the trend toward electronic medical records and its effect on medical malpractice.  The professor sees several problems with EMR’s, noting that computers can cause errors with bugs or shutdowns and that entering data into computers impedes on physicians already squeezed schedule.  On the whole, […]

Side Note: After three years without an increase, New York malpractice insurance rates have been increased an average of 5% this year.  Though this is a manageable increase, New York is still a hostile legal climate for doctors.  New York physicians should advocate for tort reform in their state, so that premiums do not increase more. […]