Georgia lawmakers are considering whether to overhaul the state’s medical malpractice system. A Senate panel heard testimony recently on Senate Bill 141, the Patient Injury Act, which would move medical malpractice claims out of the courts and into an administrative system overseen by a Patient Compensation Board.
Sen. Brandon Beach, R-Alpharetta, the bill’s sponsor, said the new system would be similar to workers’ compensation and would reduce costs and speed up payments to those deserving compensation.
Beach said doctors are practicing defensive medicine by ordering unnecessary tests and procedures to reduce liability, which is driving up the cost of health care and exposing patients to medical risks.
The bill acknowledges that a greater number of applications will qualify for compensation under the change.
“It would protect the doctors so they would know they are not being sued in a court of law, that they would go before a panel and it would be a no-fault system,” Beach said. “So then they would decrease the tests they order.”
Opponents doubt those benefits.
“No other state has attempted such a drastic overhaul,” said former state Sen. Arthur Edge, a lobbyist for MAG Mutual Insurance Co., which sells liability insurance for doctors in Georgia. “Under this bill you will have more claims, higher costs, more reporting, higher taxes and more bureaucracy.”
Dr. John Harvey, the Medical Association of Georgia, agreed that the primary concern is that costs will increase. “While it’s proposed as a no-fault system, it’s hard for a physician to understand that if a claim is awarded.” he said.
Under the bill, a patient would submit a claim to a new Office of Medical Review, which would have 10 days to determine whether there was a medical injury. If it finds there is one, the doctor is notified and has 15 days to respond. If the doctor challenges the claim, then a team of experts has 60 days to investigate. An independent medical review panel will issue a decision, which the doctor may appeal.
Charles L. Ruffin, State Bar of Georgia, said his group opposes taking claims out of the courts. “We need to have an impartial judge overseeing an impartial jury making these decisions,” Ruffin said.
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