“Yes, I am a lawyer, and I will respond to the recent letter blaming the high cost of malpractice insurance on lawyers. To borrow the writer’s phrase, don’t believe it.
First, by their own admission, insurance companies make hundreds of millions in profits each year. Good for them. However, with this in mind, how can they possibly justify raising premiums by leaps and bounds year after year?
Secondly, the writer suggests something needs to be done about “frivolous” lawsuits. Supposedly, something was done in the 1970s, when Louisiana adopted a limit on the amount of damages a person could recover in a malpractice suit. The insurance companies pushed this cap with the promise it would lower premiums. Instead, after nearly 40 years of implementation, premiums have skyrocketed. Does this tell you something about the effectiveness of “tort reform?”
Finally, I’m all for requiring that the loser pays. Why then, did Gov. Mike Foster veto such a bill before he left office? The answer is, insurers were against it because they want to urge frivolous defenses, and don’t want to have to pay for it when they lose.
Medical malpractice premiums are too high because insurers charge too much. If you want to thank someone for high premiums, thank your insurer.”
For more information, read the original article, written as a letter to the editor on http://www.2theadvocate.com.
