F.D.A. to Expand Scrutiny of Risks From Drugs After They’re Approved for Sale

Chastened by repeated instances in which popular medicines proved deadly, federal health officials announced a major effort on Thursday to use information on Medicare claims to assess the risks of drugs already on the market. The new system, called the Sentinel Initiative, will allow officials from the Food and Drug Administration for the first time to monitor almost immediately how drugs affect health. As it stands now, months or even years must pass before officials learn of unexpected side effects that can cost dozens or even thousands of lives. “It will be a quantum leap forward in F.D.A.’s capacity to monitor the use of medical products that are currently on the market,” said Health and Human Services Secretary Michael O. Leavitt.

Please click on the link below to read the New York Times article:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/23/washington/23fda.html?_r=1&ref=health&oref=slogin

For more information on defending medical malpractice and nursing home matters in Florida contact Howard Citron at The Citron Law Firm, P.A. – www.citronlegal.com.

Study: Exercise May Protect Girls from Future Breast Cancer

Get your daughters off the couch: New research shows exercise during the teen years — starting as young as age 12 — can help protect girls from breast cancer when they’re grown. Middle-aged women have long been advised to get active to lower their risk of breast cancer after menopause. What’s new: That starting so young pays off, too. ”This really points to the benefit of sustained physical activity from adolescence through the adult years, to get the maximum benefit,” said Dr. Graham Colditz of Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, the study’s lead author. Researchers tracked nearly 65,000 nurses ages 24 to 42 who enrolled in a major health study. They answered detailed questionnaires about their physical activity dating back to age 12. Within six years of enrolling, 550 were diagnosed with breast cancer before menopause. A quarter of all breast cancer is diagnosed at these younger ages, when it’s typically more aggressive. Women who were physically active as teens and young adults were 23 percent less likely to develop premenopausal breast cancer than women who grew up sedentary, researchers report Wednesday in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. The biggest impact was regular exercise from ages 12 to 22.

Please click on the link below to read the New York Times article:

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/health/AP-Breast-Cancer.html?_r=1&ref=health&oref=slogin

For more information on defending medical malpractice and nursing home matters in Florida contact Howard Citron at The Citron Law Firm, P.A. – www.citronlegal.com.

Alarming Number of Patients Think About Killing Their Doctors

While tales of patients murdering their medical care providers are very real and very tragic, they’re also rare. But a disturbing new study indicates that thoughts of killing doctors occur more frequently than we might think, particularly among patients who are in pain, undergoing physical rehabilitation, or seeking compensation for a disability. New Scientist  reports that psychiatrist David Fishbain and his colleagues at the University of Miami, Florida, surveyed around 800 physical rehabilitation patients and found that just over 1 in 20, or around 5 percent, admitted that they entertained thoughts of murdering their physician. In a control group of people not in treatment for any condition, around 2 percent reported having felt the desire to kill their doctor in the past. Fishbain speculates that these urges are related to distrust of physicians, particularly related to disability compensation cases—if a doctor won’t support the patient’s claim, the latter often feels betrayed and angry. Recently, doctors have started apologizing to patients for mistakes in order to curb malpractice lawsuits—an approach that appears to be working. Maybe it’s not a bad idea to start having similar sit-downs with patients litigating over disability.

Please click on the link below to read the Discover.com article:

http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/discoblog/2008/05/21/alarming-number-of-patients-think-about-killing-their-doctors/

For more information on defending medical malpractice and nursing home matters in Florida contact Howard Citron at The Citron Law Firm, P.A. – www.citronlegal.com.

Doctors Can Help Lower Hospital Costs

Giving doctors cash rewards to reduce hospital spending helps control costs without compromising quality or patients’ access to care, according to a five-year study that included more than 220,000 patients. The study compared six cardiac catheterization labs that implemented this type of “gainsharing” program to 123 non-gainsharing labs. The researchers, from Arizona State University, found that gainsharing reduced hospital costs by 7.4 percent, or $315 per patient. That means that nationwide use of gainsharing could slash hospital costs for coronary stent patients by about $195 million a year, according to the researchers. Most of the savings from the gainsharing programs in the study were the result of lower prices for coronary stents. The gainsharing programs didn’t lead to any changes in patient referral patterns and didn’t increase the overall risk of in-lab complications. In fact, the gainsharing programs were associated with significant decreases in three specific types of complications, the researchers said. “We found no evidence that gainsharing prompted physicians to avoid patients with existing health problems or pick the healthiest patients,” study author Jonathon Ketcham, an assistant professor at the university’s School of Health Management and Policy, said in prepared statement. Further research into gainsharing’s effects on other health care quality measures and how it influences doctors’ decisions would be valuable, he added.

Please click on the link below to read the Statesman.com article:

http://www.statesman.com/health/content/shared-auto/healthnews/cost/615404.html

For more information on defending medical malpractice and nursing home matters in Florida contact Howard Citron at The Citron Law Firm, P.A. – www.citronlegal.com.

Over the Age of 60? Vaccine for Shingles Urged

People 60 and older should get a one-time shingles shot that can help prevent the painful rash, U.S. health officials are recommending. There’s a 50-50 chance the shot will prevent shingles for those 60 and up, though the odds get worse the older you get. But some shingles cases can be severe, and the government believes the shot is worth the $160 cost. Caused by the same virus as chickenpox, shingles is a blistering rash most common in older people. It usually ends after four weeks, but 1 in 5 victims develop long-term nerve pain. Other complications include scarring and loss of vision or hearing. Chickenpox infects about 95 percent of Americans, although some suffer mild illness and may not know they’ve had it. As many as 1 in 3 infected people develop shingles later in life.

Please click on the link below to read the Chicago Tribune article:

http://www.chicagotribune.com/features/lifestyle/health/chi-shingles-shots-natmay16,0,3269246.story

For more information on defending medical malpractice and nursing home matters in Florida contact Howard Citron at The Citron Law Firm, P.A. – www.citronlegal.com.

Migraines Linked to Higher Stroke and Heart Attack Risk

About 28 million people suffer from migraines, including 18 percent of women and about 6.5 percent of men. Although the pain often knocked victims out for hours or even days, migraines used to be seen as merely a quality of life issue – they were painful, they caused problems, but it was just a headache. But new studies have shown increasing links between people who have migraines and a higher risk of stroke and heart attack. In some cases, the risk is double compared to those who don’t have migraines. Doctors aren’t sure why there’s a link, but say the new research is a heads up to both patients and physicians that migraines should be seen as more than just recurrent pain, but as a potential warning of something more serious. “I tell my patients that there is an urgency in controlling their headaches and I don’t want them having more than a couple of attacks a month,” said Dr. Zahid Bajwa, director of education and clinical pain research at Harvard Medical School. “Anybody who has four to six attacks a month, and they last more than a couple hours – I worry about those patients.”

Please click on the link below to read the Boston Globe article:

http://www.boston.com/news/health/articles/2008/05/12/its_not_all_in_your_head/

For more information on defending medical malpractice and nursing home matters in Florida contact Howard Citron at The Citron Law Firm, P.A. – www.citronlegal.com.

Louisiana: Legal Protections for Doctors During Disasters Advance

The Legislature is nearing final passage on a package of bills designed to protect medical personnel from lawsuits that stem from health care delivered during declared emergencies. Two of the measures, Senate Bills 301 and 330 by Sen. Joel Chaisson II, D-Destrehan, are inspired and backed by Dr. Anna Pou, the New Orleans physician who was arrested but never indicted and still faces civil lawsuits related to patient deaths at Memorial Medical Center after Hurricane Katrina. The bills, which cleared the House Civil Law and Procedure Committee on Monday after passing the Senate without opposition, would provide lawsuit protections for paid medical professionals not covered under the existing Good Samaritan Act. That statute offers immunity from civil lawsuits for providers who voluntarily offer their care to an emergency victim in need.

Please click on the link below to read the Times-Picayune article:

http://www.nola.com/news/t-p/capital/index.ssf?/base/news-6/1211260934247440.xml&coll=1

For more information on defending medical malpractice and nursing home matters in Florida contact Howard Citron at The Citron Law Firm, P.A. – www.citronlegal.com.

Boca Raton Hospital Part of Total Cancer Care

Boca Raton Community Hospital said it is taking part in a study that aims to use molecular technology to enhance the ability to diagnose and treat cancer patients. The study, called Total Cancer Care, is a collaboration between the state of Florida, the Moffitt Cancer Centerand Merck & Co. There are currently 14 sites in Florida, and BRCH is the only one in South Florida. It will administer the study through its Eugene M. & Christine E. Lynn Cancer Institute under the direction of medical oncologist Dr. Louise Morrell. The hospital said researchers can now test each tumor for about 30,000 genes, which provide a molecular “fingerprint” unique to each tumor. By studying those unique molecular structures, it says, scientists are working to be able to develop new drug therapies tailored to the individual. The hospital said patients who participate in Total Cancer Care will also benefit from access to individualized clinical trials as they develop, and new medicines as they become available. It will enroll 2,500 cancer patients into the research program over the next five years, with an immediate focus on breast, prostate, brain, lung, pancreatic, colorectal and ovarian tissue.

Please click on the link below to read the South Florida Business Journal article:

http://www.bizjournals.com/southflorida/stories/2008/05/19/daily35.html?f=et81&ana=e_du

For more information on defending medical malpractice and nursing home matters in Florida contact Howard Citron at The Citron Law Firm, P.A. – www.citronlegal.com.

Poor and Middle Class Can’t Afford Legal Services in Utah

The Utah legal system’s tendency to benefit the wealthy is a growing concern for attorneys, a new survey suggests.  In a Law Day survey of 50 Utah Bar Association lawyers, 31 percent, said the system’s No. 1 problem is “only the rich are getting results … the poor and middle class can’t afford legal services.” The need for low-cost legal services is increasing as families foreclose on their homes and Iraq veterans need legal help claiming benefits, said consumer-rights lawyer Michele Morin of Morin Law.  “We’re not doing a good job with either one of those,” she said. “The nature of the economy right now is putting more people into the arena of legal assistance.”  The legal community also needs to do a better job informing people about their rights, she said.

Please click on the link below to read the Salt Lake Tribune article:

http://www.sltrib.com/news/ci_9219576

For more information on defending medical malpractice and nursing home matters in Florida contact Howard Citron at The Citron Law Firm, P.A. – www.citronlegal.com.

Closure of Miami Hospital to Cut 170 Jobs

The South Florida Evaluation and Treatment Center Annex in Miami is closing, eliminating about 170 jobs. The 100-bed forensic psychiatric hospital has been managed for the Florida Department of Children and Families by Geo Care, which is part of Boca Raton-based Geo Group, since spring 2007. Geo Group spokesman Pablo Paez said the Florida Legislature decided to close the center in its recently approved budget. The center is an annex to a facility in Florida City, which will add some beds, Paez said. He added that Geo hopes to find placement for between 30 percent and 40 percent of its affected employees in new and existing positions at other Florida facilities. The layoffs are to take effect Sept. 30.

Please click on the link below to read the South Florida Business Journal article:

http://www.bizjournals.com/southflorida/stories/2008/05/12/daily40.html?f=et81&ana=e_du

For more information on defending medical malpractice and nursing home matters in Florida contact Howard Citron at The Citron Law Firm, P.A. – www.citronlegal.com.

Malpractice Settlement Data Could Go Online in North Carolina

The North Carolina Medical Board is considering a plan to post information on medical malpractice lawsuit settlements on its Web site beginning in 2009, the Business Journal of the Greater Triad Area reports. The information on the settlements would contain the physician’s name, when the case was settled and an optional box where physicians can provide details on the reasons for the settlement. Settlements from the previous seven years would be included as part of physician profiles that the board publishes online. The Web site would not contain information on the dollar amount of the settlement, according to Thomas Mansfield, director of the medical board’s legal department. The state General Assembly passed a law last year giving the medical board the authority to obtain information on physician lawsuits, hospital privileges and criminal convictions, Mansfield said. He also said the legislation did not provide guidance on what information the board could publish online. The proposed rule for disclosing the settlements online will remain open for public comment until June 30.

Please click on the link below to read the iHealthBeat article:

http://www.ihealthbeat.org/articles/2008/5/5/Malpractice-Settlement-Data-Could-Go-Online-in-North-Carolina.aspx?topicID=55

For more information on defending medical malpractice and nursing home matters in Florida contact Howard Citron at The Citron Law Firm, P.A. – www.citronlegal.com.

New Study Suggests: Vitamin D May Curb Breast Cancer

Breast-cancer patients with low levels of Vitamin D were more likely to die of the disease or have it spread than were patients who got enough of the nutrient, researchers reported. Although not conclusive, the findings add to evidence that the “sunshine vitamin” has anticancer benefits – and are sure to renew arguments about whether a little more sunshine is a good thing. The skin makes Vitamin D from ultraviolet light. Too much sun can raise the risk of skin cancer, but many doctors also believe that small amounts – 15 minutes or so a few times a week without sunscreen – may be beneficial. While the vitamin is found in certain foods and supplements, most do not contain the best form, D-3, and have only a modest effect on levels of the nutrient in the blood. That is what matters, the Canadian study found. Only 24 percent of women in the study had sufficient blood levels of Vitamin D when they were first found to have breast cancer. Those who were deficient were nearly twice as likely to have their cancer recur or spread over the next 10 years and 73 percent more likely to die of the disease. “It’s the first time that Vitamin D has been linked to breast-cancer progression,” said the study’s leader, Pamela Goodwin of Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto. But she warned people not to start downing supplements. Experts disagree on how much Vitamin D people need or the best way to get it – and too much can be harmful. They also don’t know whether getting more Vitamin D can help when someone already has cancer. “We have no idea whether correcting a Vitamin D deficiency will in any way alter these outcomes,” said Julie Gralow, a cancer specialist at the University of Washington in Seattle. The study, released by the American Society of Clinical Oncology, will be presented at the group’s annual meeting later this month.

Please click on the link below to read the Philadelphia Inquirer article:

http://www.philly.com/inquirer/world_us/20080516_Vitamin_D_may_curb_breast_cancer.html

For more information on defending medical malpractice and nursing home matters in Florida contact Howard Citron at The Citron Law Firm, P.A. – www.citronlegal.com.

Louisiana: Medical Malpractice Law Expansion Rejected

The House of Representatives watered down, then killed, legislation to expand coverage under the state’s medical malpractice laws. House Bill 70 by Rep. Greg Cromer, R-Slidell, died when 44 representatives voted for it while 45 representatives voted against it. Fifty-three votes are needed for passage. Sixteen House member didn’t vote. Cromer wanted to add to the definition of malpractice, problems that occur in the transporting and monitoring of patients as well as failure to attend to their personal hygiene. “It’s a consumer bill,” Cromer told his colleagues. He said the idea is to provide some recourse for patients in cases where there is no general liability insurance policy. Other lawmakers lined up to fight the measure opposed by the AARP. Rep. Rick Gallot, D-Ruston, said he didn’t understand how a nursing home patient falling out of a wheelchair would be medical malpractice. Rep. Chris Roy Jr., D-Alexandria, said courts have defined what constitutes medical malpractice. He said there is a six-prong test that has worked well. Hygiene is not a medical malpractice issue, Roy said. “It’s a human decency issue,” he said. Rep. Walt Leger, D-New Orleans, said the legislation would allow nursing homes to go under the medical malpractice cap to handle “negligence situations and overburden the system.”

Please click on the link below to read the Advocate article:

http://www.2theadvocate.com/news/18354629.html

For more information on defending medical malpractice and nursing home matters in Florida contact Howard Citron at The Citron Law Firm, P.A. – www.citronlegal.com.

Massachusetts: Amendment Rejected to Change State’s Medical Malpractice Laws

Medical liability changes (S 2650) — The Senate, 6-33, rejected an amendment making changes in the state’s medical malpractice laws.

Provisions include requiring that expert witnesses be board certified in the same specialty in which the defendant is licensed; allowing awards greater than $50,000 to be paid by periodic payment rather than in a lump-sum; replacing the current system under which any party can be liable for up to the full amount of judgment with a system that makes defendants liable only for the amount of damages for which they were responsible and indexing the interest rate paid on judgments to Treasury Bill rates.

Amendment supporters said the current medical malpractice system needs major reforms in order to attract and retain doctors in Massachusetts. They noted that liability premiums for physicians have risen more than 130 percent from 1993 to 2005.

Some amendment opponents said that the amendment makes major changes and should be dealt with as a separate bill.

Others said that insurance companies have already said that these changes would not help reduce malpractice insurance rates. Some said that the only way to reduce premiums is for the state to subsidize the doctors.

A “Yes” vote is for the amendment making changes in the state’s medical malpractice laws.

A “No” vote is against the amendment.

Sen. Anthony Galluccio No       

Sen. Thomas McGee No    

Please click on the link below to read the Saugus Advisor article:

http://www.wickedlocal.com/saugus/news/x1319857404

For more information on defending medical malpractice and nursing home matters in Florida contact Howard Citron at The Citron Law Firm, P.A. – www.citronlegal.com.

Wanted: Doctors in Delaware – As Physician Shortage Looms, Hospitals Across State Recruit for the Future

Bayhealth Medical Center is working to recruit at least 60 doctors to Kent and Sussex counties over the next several years to fill an anticipated need for physicians in its fast-growing health system, hospital officials said. Bayhealth, which owns and operates Kent General Hospital in Dover and Milford Memorial Hospital in Milford, is looking for internists and family practice doctors, as well as specialists in areas including orthopedics, urology and obstetrics/gynecology, officials said. Dr. Gary Siegelman, Bayhealth’s chief medical officer, said the hospital worked with a consultant last year on a needs assessment that examined population trends, demographics, the number of physicians already practicing in the area and how many are expected to retire soon. The assessment showed “a fairly significant need over the next several years” Siegelman said, as the population of Kent and Sussex counties continues to grow, driven by an influx of retirees.   

Please click on the link below to read the DelawareOnline.com article:

http://www.delawareonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080419/BUSINESS/804190315

For more information on defending medical malpractice and nursing home matters in Florida contact Howard Citron at The Citron Law Firm, P.A. – www.citronlegal.com.

Reasons Not To Become A Doctor

No one ever said being a doctor was easy. School and training go on seemingly forever; once graduation arrives, doctors work long hours and are faced with life-and-death decisions daily. But there were rewards. For decades, doctors earned hefty paychecks, had autonomy and respect. But those benefits are fading, and as a result, so is the number of doctors. Within the next 15 years, the United States will experience a shortage of between 90,000 to 200,000 physicians, according to the recently published Will the Last Physician in America Please Turn Off the Lights: A Look at America’s Looming Doctor Shortage. The American Medical Association recognizes there are shortages in certain geographic areas and in certain specialties. Part of that is due to the aging population and a stagnant number of medical-school applicants. But there are other significant reasons. They include the increasing costs of medical malpractice coverage, higher practice costs, lower insurance reimbursement rates and insurance-company restrictions resulting in less autonomy over how patients are cared for.

Please click on the link below to read the Forbes.com article:

http://www.forbes.com/leadership/2008/05/05/physicians-training-prospects-lead-careers-cx_tw_0505doctors.html

For more information on defending medical malpractice and nursing home matters in Florida contact Howard Citron at The Citron Law Firm, P.A. – www.citronlegal.com.

As Economy Slows, So Do Laser Eye Surgeries

Call it the Lasik indicator. With the weak economy forcing consumers to cut back on discretionary spending, the number of laser vision-correction surgeries has been falling — as it did during the last recession. More than 800,000 Americans underwent Lasik surgery in 2007, a slight increase from 2006. But the numbers started slumping along with the economy in the second half of last year. And industry analysts are now predicting a Lasik recession. “We’re forecasting a 17 percent drop for 2008,” said David Harmon, president of Market Scope, an eye surgery market research house. Mr. Harmon said that when first-quarter data becomes available next month, he expects it to show an even sharper decline in Lasik surgeries than in 2001. That time around, the sour economy led to a three-year slump in the laser procedures, which are typically not covered by insurance. Lasik — for laser-assisted in situ keratomileusis — typically costs anywhere from $800 to $3,000 or more per eye. Earlier this year, two main players in the business — Advanced Medical Optics, a leading maker of laser surgery equipment, and LCA-Vision, which owns a chain of laser surgery centers — warned of a market slowdown. Besides the economic challenge, the industry is contending with a small but growing number of complaints about the results of Lasik procedures.

Please click on the link below to read the New York Times article:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/24/business/24lasik.html?_r=1&ref=health&oref=slogin

For more information on defending medical malpractice and nursing home matters in Florida contact Howard Citron at The Citron Law Firm, P.A. – www.citronlegal.com.

Request Made to Uphold Illinois’ 2005 Medical Malpractice Reform and Overturn Cook County Circuit Court’s November 2007 Decision Declaring it Unconstitutional

The Illinois State Medical Society and the American Medical Association filed an amicus brief asking the Illinois Supreme Court to preserve Illinois patients’ future access to medical care by upholding the state’s 2005 medical malpractice lawsuit reform law, and thereby overturning the Cook County Circuit Court’s November 2007 decision declaring it unconstitutional. “The state legislature, in a nonpartisan manner, thoroughly debated and carefully crafted the medical lawsuit reform law to stop the steady exodus of doctors retiring early, dropping high-risk specialties, and leaving the state due to an out-of-control medical litigation climate in Illinois,” stated Illinois State Medical Society President Dr. Shastri Swaminathan. “The reform law fairly balances an individual’s right to sue for medical negligence with the needs of Illinois citizens to find good medical care.” Among a host of reform provisions aimed at preserving patient access to medical care, the law in question capped non-economic damage awards at $500,000 for physicians and $1 million for hospitals. Non-economic damages are largely unpredictable and unquantifiable sums awarded by juries for emotional issues such as pain and suffering. Under the reform law, victims of true medical negligence could still receive unlimited economic damages such as lost wages, medical expenses, and future earning potential. “Medical liability reforms that include caps on non-economic damages work,” said AMA Board Chair Edward L. Langston, M.D. “A comparison of states shows that those with caps on non-economic damages have an increased supply of physicians and high-risk specialists, resulting in more physicians to care for patients. In addition, physicians pay at least 17 percent less in liability premiums in states with caps on non-economic damages, which helps physicians continue to practice medicine as liability premiums remain at historically high levels.” While Illinois’ high court has not set an official date for issuing its ruling on the constitutionality of medical lawsuit reforms, it is expected that more briefs will be filed by both plaintiffs and defendants throughout the summer months, with oral arguments occurring soon thereafter. Other pro-reform law briefs were also filed today by former U.S. Solicitor General and renowned legal scholar Theodore Olson on behalf of the defendants, and others on behalf of the Illinois Hospital Association, the Metropolitan Chicago Healthcare Council, and their hospital members involved in the underlying medical negligence litigation.

Please click on the link below to read the Herald News article:

http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/heraldnews/business/939405,jo08_IMSA_web.article

For more information on defending medical malpractice and nursing home matters in Florida contact Howard Citron at The Citron Law Firm, P.A. – www.citronlegal.com.

Oregon Supreme Court Upholds Statute of Limitations in Medical Malpractice Cases Involving Minors

The Oregon Supreme Court this week upheld a five-year statute of limitations on medical malpractice lawsuits involving minors. The high court ruled against a woman’s claim that laws in effect when Oregon was a territory blocked a five-year statute of limitations that the Legislature approved after Oregon became a state. Kelly Christiansen sued Providence Health System, claiming one of its doctors failed to recognize signs that her son was experiencing fetal distress being born and failed to perform an emergency Caesarean section. She sued Providence in January 2003, eight years after her son was born. The boy had been diagnosed with various developmental and neurological disorders, including epilepsy, which other doctors blamed on fetal distress that caused a lack of oxygen that ultimately required artificial resuscitation after his birth. Christiansen argued that when Oregon was a territory, negligence suits involving a minor could be filed at any time before the child reached the age of majority because a statute was in place that tolled the limitation period for minors. She also argued that the state’s constitution protected that provision from change. The court rejected her argument unanimously. The court’s opinion by Chief Justice Paul De Muniz said the justices agreed with Christiansen that the five-year limitation “can lead to harsh consequences in some cases.” He added that state lawmakers are not barred from setting the statute of limitations as it did. “The Remedy Clause creates no barriers to the enactment of a statute that modifies the disability protection that minors enjoyed before 1859. Consequently, the pre-statehood disability law does not protect mother from the five-year limitation,” he wrote.

Please click on the link below to read the Legal Newsline article:

http://www.legalnewsline.com/news/212186-oregon-supreme-court-upholds-malpractice-limits

For more information on defending medical malpractice and nursing home matters in Florida contact Howard Citron at The Citron Law Firm, P.A. – www.citronlegal.com.

Oklahoma Governor Vows to Veto Newest Medical Malpractice Reform Measure

Barely before the ink was dry on a significant tort reform bill the Legislature passed Wednesday, Gov. Brad Henry promised to veto the measure. The bill would reinstate certain provisions of a law struck down as unconstitutional in 2006. House Bill 2458 would require plaintiffs to obtain an affidavit from an expert when filing a medical malpractice lawsuit – but this time, the bill includes wording designed to avoid a legal pitfall that rendered the previous law unconstitutional. Yet, Henry said the bill is too similar to the law that was previously rejected by the Oklahoma Supreme Court. “Governor Henry supports efforts to reduce frivolous lawsuits, but because the court has already spoken clearly on the certificate of merit issue, enacting this measure would be an exercise in futility,” said Henry’s spokesman Paul Sund. “Essentially, the state would make the same mistake twice, increasing costs for both businesses and consumers as the law was appealed and overturned for a second time by the Supreme Court.” HB 2458, by state Rep. Colby Schwartz, R-Yukon, was a bill to establish a system for tracking hospital-acquired infections before the Senate amended the bill on April 21 to provide the affidavit requirement. Sund said Henry communicated his concerns to legislative leaders as soon as the language was added, but lawmakers “chose to proceed with the flawed language.” The House voted 54 to 44 on Wednesday to accept the changes made in the Senate, sending the bill to Henry’s desk. The most recent version of HB 2458 would require a plaintiff filing any civil action for professional negligence to attach to their petition an affidavit attesting that a qualified expert has reviewed the claim and has issued a written opinion that the claim has merit and is based on good cause. The written opinion from the qualified expert would lay out the plaintiff’s case, citing the acts or omissions the expert believes constituted professional negligence. The expert’s written opinion would not be admissible at trial for any purpose, “nor shall inquiry be permitted with regard to the written opinion for any purpose either in discovery or at trial,” the bill states.

Please click on the link below to read the Journal Record article:

http://www.journalrecord.com/article.cfm?recid=88694

For more information on defending medical malpractice and nursing home matters in Florida contact Howard Citron at The Citron Law Firm, P.A. – www.citronlegal.com.