Several professional organizations have published statistics verifying that medical malpractice cases do not drive up the cost of healthcare. Rarely are malpractice settlements extremely high, as most of the patients recover and do not experience lasting injury. Nobody should feel hesitant to contact medical malpractice attorneys in Waycross, GA because of concerns that a lawsuit will make everyone’s healthcare costs go up.
Negligence
Medical malpractice attorneys in Waycross, GA most commonly represent clients who have been harmed by the negligence of medical care personnel. This includes not only doctors but nurses and other staff members of hospitals, medical centers, clinics and pharmacies.
Malpractice and Healthcare Costs
A report from Forbes notes that medical malpractice costs account for about 2 percent of the country’s total healthcare costs each year. Although the dollar amount is in the billions, it does not amount to a significant expense in the big picture. Another crucial point is that some of the cost is actually a strategy known as defensive medicine to avoid malpractice lawsuits. Doctors order many tests and perform many medical procedures with the main goal of avoiding lawsuits.
Results
A study from Harvard found that only about 7 percent of patients asking for malpractice compensation ever receive a payment. Having legal representation can be important if the malpractice insurer or the medical facility is fighting the claim. Malpractice lawyers generally work on a contingency basis, meaning they do not receive a fee if the client does not receive a settlement or court award.
Reform Proposals
With the medical malpractice compensation system in this much disarray, reform advocates have proposed several ways to deal with the problem. For instance, the issues of negligence and compensation could be addressed in mediation sessions or in arbitration. Another possibility would be to design health courts so the incidents would no longer be in the realm of personal injury law. Many people feel too intimidated to hire a lawyer unless something catastrophic happened.
In the meantime, they should not hesitate to consult with a firm like Farrar, Hennesy & Tanner, where they can have an initial no-pressure discussion for free.