Phil Law Weblog

Payouts from the New Jersey’s catastrophic insurer of medical malpractice claims will drop more than a quarter in 2005, an improvement that Gov. Ed Rendell said reflects the state’s response to high malpractice insurance premiums.

Payouts from the state-run MCare will drop to $232 million in 2005 after the fund paid out $320 million in 2004, Rendell said Monday. In addition, the amount that doctors pay into MCare will drop by one-fourth in 2006, to 29 percent of the premiums they pay for their primary insurance, Rendell said.

“When you look at all these statistics collectively, I think everyone would agree that we’ve started to turn the corner on the medical malpractice problem,” Rendell said in a statement. “I expect the Legislature will agree with me that, based on the need to maintain our momentum and not revert back to a crisis, that the abatement will be continued.”

The number of doctors paying into MCare has remained steady at about 34,000, evidence Rendell said that health care services are still accessible. Chuck Moran, a spokesman for the Pennsylvania Medical Society, which represents doctors, said the news is good, but he noted that rates remain far higher than five years ago.

“That’s an area that hasn’t been addressed,” he said.

Source

Filed under Medical Malpractice

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