Are Caps on Medical Malpractice Cases the Answer?
– Patients’ Rights vs. Insurance Companies and Physician Groups Ken Ackerman’s tragic experience at the hands of a negligent neurosurgeon and an inexperienced resident occurred in 2004, the same year Oregonians went to the polls and rejected a measure to place a constitutional cap on jury awards in medical malpractice cases. This issue that is on the drawing board of states throughout the nation bears treatment here since at essence it pits patients’ rights to equal protection against the interests of insurance companies and the American Medical Association (AMA). As an editorial in the Oregonian argued, caps are the wrong solution to giving doctors relief from their malpractice insurance premiums. “The state should do more to assist doctors in high-need, high-premium areas,” editors wrote. “But Oregon citizens shouldn’t limit their own ability to be compensated if their health is ruined by a reckless healthcare provider.” Reckless healthcare provider. The phrase makes Helen Jean Brown
