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Although Americans say patients bring too many lawsuits, reform is low priority

Credentialing Resource Center Connection, January 13, 2005

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According to recent survey results released by the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Harvard School of Public Health, 61 percent of Americans said that they believe patients bring too many lawsuits against doctors and 49 percent said juries award too much money to patients. However, despite their show of support for President Bush's medical tort reform push, respondents ranked reducing jury awards in medical malpractice lawsuits low on their overall health care priority list. The survey results, released Jan. 11, placed reducing malpractice jury awards 11th on respondent's health care priority list for the President and Congress. Also notable was the fact that more than six in 10 respondents favored caps on patients' pain and suffering damages in medical malpractice lawsuits. However, among those who favored caps, 53 percent favored a cap of at least double the $250,000 sought by the President.

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