President Believes Medical Malpractice Lawsuits to be Responsible for Rise in Costs

Yesterday, in a speech, President Barack Obama said that U.S. healthcare cannot be made more effective and efficient, “if doctors feel like they are constantly looking over their shoulder for fear of lawsuits.” He believes that the rising cost of medical malpractice insurance for doctors and surgeons is partially to blame for the soaring costs of healthcare.

President Obama has made it clear that he would like to go after the medical malpractice insurers and the American public to try to decrease the number of medical malpractice cases. However, many experts, including an economist from Harvard University claim that the rising cost of malpractice insurance is actually a drop in the bucket.

One economist said that the cost was about $3.6 billion, or $12 from every Americans’ pocket. It would appear, therefore, that it is not the cost of liability insurance that is driving up premiums.

President Obama and his administration have proposed several ideas, including a set of “best practice” guidelines, to shield doctors from malpractice lawsuits.