The Pros & Cons of Binding Arbitration in MedMal Cases
side note: There is a trend in medicine where physicians attempt to get their patients to sign a waiver, stating that if there is a dispute arising from healthcare delivered by their doctor, they agree to have the dispute settled with binding arbitration. This is occurring more often in certain states, but as is the case in this article, some states have had high-profile malpractice cases that spook petients from signing the agreement. The article below examines a case in Nevada, a state where, several years ago, a physician exposed scores of patients to Hepatitis C and HIV. Pro-arbitration physicians are pointing to the devastating effect the case has had on medical malpractice insurance rates as reason for the arbitration agreements; those refusing to sign point to the same case as the reason they will not participate.
Henderson resident Sandy Runkle visited a new doctor recently and, under standably, missed a few signatures on the voluminous intake paperwork.
