Contact: Adrienne ("Andy") Kotner
President
Citizens Against Lawsuit Abuse
1761 Hotel Circle South, Suite 120
San Diego, California 92108-3318
Tel: (619) 295-6059
Fax: (619) 295-6710
E-mail: sdcala@adnc.com

NAS Report Illustrates How Lawsuit Abuse is a Sickness

America’s Healthcare Crisis Calls for Legal Reforms

San Diego, CA – San Diego County Citizens Against Lawsuit Abuse (CALA) today praised a report by the National Academy of Sciences (NAS), Institute of Medicine which identifies a flawed liability system as one of the largest threats to our health and safety.

"This report reaffirms what we have been saying for years," said Andy Kotner, President of San Diego CALA, "that lawsuit abuse compromises the healthcare system and contributes to making us sick. Rapidly increasing health insurance premiums for fewer benefits would make anyone, young or old, sick."

Reforming the legal system to address out-of-control lawsuits and the rush on liability suits is one of the five categories for improvement identified by the NAS report. The study notes, "The legal liability system does not adequately fulfill either of its two main objectives – to encourage enhanced safety and quality, and to provide timely and fair compensation to injured patients."

Additional key points in the report include:

• One in seven Americans has no health insurance, and the number of uninsured is rising
• As the numbers of uninsured grow, the effects, in terms of poorer overall health status, reduced productivity, increased disability, and possibly increased social services expenditures, are likely to be felt at the community level.
• The current liability system hampers efforts to identify and learn from errors
• Overuse of medically unnecessary procedures (i.e., "defensive medicine") is widespread
• Legal fees and expenses consume upwards of half the cost of liability insurance premiums
• There is widespread agreement that the current system of tort liability is a poor way to prevent and redress injury resulting from medical error.
• Most legal claims do not relate to negligent care.

"We have seen how frivolous lawsuits and outrageous jury awards have compromised healthcare here in some states, as doctors are fleeing and people can no longer afford health insurance because of rising premiums.

In our opinion, this new study confirms that lawsuit abuse is a key factor contributing to the healthcare crisis affecting all Americans," Kotner stated.

The comprehensive NAS report is available at http://www.nap.edu/books/0309087074/html/.