Laser Hair Removal Injury Claims
October 21, 2013
The results of a study designed to identify the incidence of medical professional liability claims stemming from cutaneous laser surgery performed by nonphysician operators (“NPOs”) in the United States that was published online in the journal JAMA Dermatol on October 16, 2013 showed�[...]
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Physician Addiction
October 17, 2013
No one wants or expects their treating physician to be addicted to drugs or alcohol. Addiction leads to mistakes and mistakes lead to unnecessary harms suffered by patients. The effects of drugs or alcohol can cloud a physician’s decision-making process and cause unintended injuries to patien[...]
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Medical Malpractice Payments To Veterans Hit 12-Year High
September 16, 2013
Medical malpractice payments to veterans made on behalf of the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs (“VA”) totaled $91.7 million in 2012 (an increase of 28% from 2011, when the VA paid approximately $72 million in medical malpractice payments), which was the highest amount in 12 years. F[...]
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State Medical Boards Are Failing Patients
August 25, 2013
An investigation report appearing in USA TODAY on August 20, 2013 found that thousands of doctors throughout the United States who lost their clinical privileges at hospitals and other medical facilities due to their misconduct were not punished by the state medical boards that were responsible fo[...]
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Cognitive Bias Is An Important Cause Of Diagnostic Errors
August 11, 2013
In an article appearing on June 27, 2013 in the New England Journal of Medicine, the effect of cognitive bias in reaching incorrect diagnoses was discussed. It was noted that the rate of diagnostic errors is estimated to be between 10% and 15%, with the rate highest for specialties such as emergen[...]
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Hospital Mergers Result In Higher Patient Care Costs
June 15, 2013
There are about 5,724 hospitals in the United States presently. It is expected that about 1,000 of them will have new owners within the next seven years. In 2012, there were more than 100 hospital merger and acquisition deals (twice the number than in 2009). It will become increasing difficult for[...]
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Foreign Doctors In The United States
May 28, 2013
Foreign doctors in the United States (those who graduated from medical schools outside of the U.S.) are formally referred to as International Medical Graduates (“IMGs”). From the time of the U.S. Civil War until World War II, Americans would go abroad for advanced medical education ([...]
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How Does The Affordable Care Act Affect Me? (Part I)
May 7, 2013
The Affordable Care Act (“ACA”) requires most U.S. citizens and legal residents to have health insurance and creates state-based American Health Benefit Exchanges (“AHBE”) through which individuals can purchase coverage. The ACA makes available to individuals and to families[...]
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