Side Note: The Wisconsin Supreme Court has found that the state must repay $200M that it took out of the state patient compensation fund for malpractice.  This is a victory for the Wisconsin Medical Association, and for health care consumers in Wisconsin.  A solvent patient compensation fund keeps medical malpractice insurance premiums stable, and in […]

By PHIL GALEWITZ http://www.palmbeachpost.com After 11 hours of sweat and pain, Kristen Hibdon’s labor was no longer progressing. Hibdon opted – with her doctor’s urging – to have the baby via a Caesarean section, a form of abdominal surgery. “Initially, I was disappointed,” she said of her C-section at Good Samaritan Medical Center in West […]

Admission to Miami-Dade College’s trailblazing midwifery program was suspended Friday — a sign of the financial challenges afflicting MDC and other schools. BY ERIKA BERAS http://www.miamiherald.com In another sign of the hard times in higher education, Miami Dade College said Friday it was suspending its innovative midwifery program — because not enough students had paid […]

By MIKE DENNISON http://www.missoulian.com HELENA – Retiree Hugh van Swearingen hadn’t seen a doctor in four years, but when he called a Helena clinic a few months ago to make an appointment, he was told, sorry, no room at the inn. “They said they weren’t taking new Medicare patients,â€? says Van Swearingen, who is 70. […]

By Patty Pensa | South Florida Sun-Sentinel http://www.sun-sentinel.com When voters told physicians, “Three strikes, you’re out,” Dr. Douglas Martin cautiously pulled back. He dropped his malpractice insurance and cut his practice to three half days a week. “The rest of the time, I trade stocks,” said Martin, a neurosurgeon for almost 30 years. “It’s actually […]

http://www.insurancejournal.com Florida Insurance Regulators held a workshop Monday to seek public input on a draft rule that would implement new legislation which gives the insurance commissioner discretion in allowing unaccredited reinsurance companies to conduct business in Florida without having to post 100 percent collateral. The workshop was part of the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation […]

http://www.the-injury-lawyer-directory.com We often hear about doctors being involved in multimillion dollar lawsuits, but it is rare that the physician is actually the one suing rather than the one being sued. A Connecticut physician sued the anesthesiologist and hospital where his wife died during routine face-lift surgery for a total of $3.1 million and won. Dr. […]

http://www.stltoday.co With a shortage of physicians, nurse practitioners can help fill the void. Terry McQuaide, advanced nurse practitioner, Esse Health As an advanced nurse practitioner with offices in Illinois and Missouri, I have a unique perspective. My Illinois patients receive more efficient care for issues such as bronchitis and acute back pain based on that […]

By M.J. Ellington http://www.decaturdaily.com/ A local senator’s bill to provide medical liability insurance for volunteer doctors cleared a Senate committee Wednesday. Sen. Arthur Orr, R-Decatur, the bill’s sponsor, said the Finance and Taxation Governmental Affairs Committee passed the bill with bipartisan support. It now goes to the full Senate.