Side note: Prosecuting a “Pill Mill”, individuals who seek out multiple prescriptions of commonly abused prescription drugs for the sole purpose of illegal resale, often requires the same expense and level of expert testimony as a medical malpractice lawsuit. Since prescription drugs are legal the possession of the drugs is not a crime. Criminal intent […]

side note: This doesn’t pass the sniff test. The Louisiana state legislature recently passed a law that forbids access to the state’s excess liability medical malpractice insurance fund to doctors that perform abortions. Of course, those doctors still must pay into the fund, but cannot access it because those doctors choose to perform a specific, […]

Side note: Citizens of the state of Connecticut have access to some of the finest health care available in the United States; unfortunately it is also some of the most expensive. The high cost of health care in Connecticut is straining family budgets and draining the state’s coffers as it drives jobs out of the […]

Side Note: The Wisconsin Supreme Court is currently reviewing a case that challenge’s notions about informed consent. While we have previously discussed here the concept of informed consent and stressed that it is not merely getting a signature on a consent form, it bears repeating that informed consent is a process and a conversation. However, […]

Side Note: In the health care world, Massachusetts has a reputation for being progressive and ahead of its time. Massachusetts has already enacted universal coverage and is now looking to undertake the next step and work on cost-containment. Many health care experts are watching Massachusetts to see what lessons can be learned and applied, particularly […]

side note: This is a ruling that could have significant impact on the cost of medical liability insurance in Ohio. In this case, an appellate court found that the state’s statute of repose was unconstitutional. Like a statute of limitations, a statute of repose imposes a deadline for filing a claim. In Ohio, the statute […]

side note: Could this be a judicial “make good”? After neutering the majority of Illinois’ medical malpractice tort reforms when it deemed the state’s cap on non-economic damages unconstitutional two years ago, Illinois’ highest court more clearly defined the role of expert testimony in medical professional liability lawsuits this month. The question is whether this […]

side note: California’s MICRA Act has been considered the gold standard of tort reform since 1975, but Texas’ 2003 medical liability tort reforms built on California’s law and upped the ante. And the results have been amazing. The article below purports that in the wake of the Lone Star State’s 2003 reforms, the number of […]

side note: This is the Illinois story that keeps on giving. Last year, the Chicago Tribune did an investigative article where it was discovered an appalling number of Illinois doctors practicing with convictions on their record for sex crimes or violent acts against patients. This led directly to the passage and implementation of House Bill […]