Damage Cap Credited for Drop in Texas Malpractice Premiums

Thanks to a tort reform law in Texas, physicians in the Lone Star State will have reduced liability premiums, officials said this week. The board of the Texas Medical Liability Trust recently approved an average rate reduction of 4.7 percent for TMLT-insured physicians beginning next year. Renewing policyholders will also receive a 22.5 percent dividend. “This is the fourth consecutive year the Trust has announced a policyholder dividend,” said Fields. “The 22.5 percent dividend is the largest percentage dividend in the Trust’s history,” said Bob Fields, president and CEO of the Texas Medical Liability Trust.

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

http://www.legalnewsline.com/news/215496-damage-cap-credited-for-drop-in-texas-malpractice-premiums

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.

Texas: Challenges to Medical Malpractice Law and Damage Caps

In 2003, Texas approved a constitutional amendment limiting non-economic damage in medical malpractice cases to $250,000 for physicians. Since then, liability insurance rates have fallen and doctors have flowed into the state, changes physicians attribute to the 2003 med mal reforms, which limit non-economic damages, but don’t cap economic awards. In fact, Texas physicians have seen a 24 percent overall drop in medical liability rates since 2003. And medical license applications jumped 58 percent since 2003, from 2,561 to 4,041. Now, however, opponents of the cap have taken their case to federal court, asking to have it declared unconstitutional. They’re arguing, among other things, that the Texas law violates patients’ jury trial and due process rights by setting an arbitrary recovery limit. The case is now pending in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas. These opponents argue that any proposed benefits from access to care from caps shouldn’t trump patients’ legal rights. Meanwhile, they note that prior to the 2003 caps, many carriers had increased rates by as much as 150 percent, a rise that hasn’t even been covered yet.

Please click on the link below to read the Fierce Healthcare article:

http://www.fiercehealthcare.com/story/tx-may-change-medical-malpractice-law/2008-09-02

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.