America's health care system is in crisis. Skyrocketing medical liability insurance
premiums are leading many doctors to cut services, leave litigious states, or
abandon the practice of medicine altogether. As a result, patients are losing
access to affordable health care, hospitals are closing, and families are losing
doctors they've relied on for years. Escalating insurance costs for physicians
and other health care providers are also contributing to a rise in the practice
of "defensive medicine" unnecessary treatment or medical procedures
designed to reduce the prospect of litigation. Defensive medicine means patients
pay more for services they may not need while doctors spend an increasing amount
of valuable treatment time on unwarranted care. As a result, more critical patients
often can't get the care they need when they need it.
We must fix our ailing
health insurance system to keep doctors in hospitals and out of courtrooms. Comprehensive
medical liability reform means better access and more affordable health care for
the patients who need it. According to a report by the Joint Economic Committee
of the U.S. Congress, comprehensive reforms could improve access to health care,
particularly for women, low-income individuals, and rural residents, as well as
increase the number of Americans with health insurance by as many as 3.9 million
people. Isn't it time we protect our health care by making sure our lawmakers
know Every Patient Counts?
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