The American Medical Association and 90 other medical organizations have sent a letter to the Treasury Department opposing any changes to the tax code that would encourage trial attorneys to file more lawsuits, which could increase healthcare costs.
The proposed policy would allow trial attorneys to deduct litigation expenses from their taxes in certain cases.
"Changing the tax policy ... would cost taxpayers $1.5 billion and increase the cost of healthcare in our nation," said J. James Rohack, MD, the AMA's immediate past-president. "This change would encourage trial attorneys to file more lawsuits."
A recent AMA report indicated 95 medical liability claims were filed for every 100 physicians. Currently, 65 percent of medical liability claims are dropped or dismissed. Average defense costs can top $100,000 and take physicians away from patient care.
“Many physicians are forced to practice defensive medicine to protect themselves from meritless lawsuits,” Rohack said. “The U.S. government estimates the cost of defensive medicine to be between $70 billion to $126 billion per year.”
The AMA says it supports proven medical liability reforms already working in California and Texas, as well as testing for innovative reform models, to reduce healthcare costs and keep physicians caring for patients.
“The Congressional Budget Office found that medical liability reforms that include a quarter-million-dollar cap on non-economic damages would reduce the federal budget deficit by about $54 billion over 10 years,” the letter read.
“As our nation works to reduce the growth in healthcare costs, it’s clear that medical liability reform must be part of the solution,” Rohack said.