A study of malpractice litigation claims, published in the May 11, 2006 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine, concluded that 40% of claims were without merit, including those with no evidence of injury (3%) and claims that were not associated with medical errors (37%). However, the study...
Credentialing Resource Center Digest - Volume 7, Issue 20
The American Medical Association (AMA) on May 8 issued a statement to refute the "flawed analysis" in a study published in the May/June issue of Health Affairs. The study's authors, a law professor and two law students, contended that perceptions of a liability crisis are overblown based on data...
Credentialing Resource Center Digest - Volume 7, Issue 19
The New Hampshire state Senate unanimously passed legislation May 4 to prohibit the sale of physicians' prescription information to pharmaceutical, insurance, and data-mining companies for commercial purposes. If Gov. John Lynch (D) signs the bill, the state will become the first in the nation...
Credentialing Resource Center Digest - Volume 7, Issue 18
Deciding whether to have non-physicians, such as nurses, participate in peer review is a culture issue-although it is wise to consult with your legal counsel to make sure that having non-physicians participate in peer review does not jeopardize any peer review legal protection.
The main...
Credentialing Resource Center Digest - Volume 7, Issue 18
A board member of the American Medical Association (AMA) last week testified in Congress in support of medical liability reform, calling on legislators to cap non-economic damages. The U.S. House of Representatives passed medical liability legislation, H.R. 5, last July. Now the Senate is...
Credentialing Resource Center Digest - Volume 7, Issue 17
The importance of creating a reporting system that respects and protects staff members who disclose improper conduct can not be overstated. Hospital staff may be reluctant to report physician misconduct out of fear of retaliation by powerful physicians, and a physician's colleagues may be...