preventative malpractice insurance_02

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Protecting Physicians… Relentlessly Protecting Physicians’ Most Precious Asset – Their Reputation…

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Each year many groundless malpractice suits are initiated against health care providers. Physicians are pressured to settle frivolous lawsuits in order to minimize their financial risk. Damaging physician's reputations. Creating undue stress. And greatly increasing malpractice insurance premiums. The legal system leaves physicians vulnerable to frivolous lawsuits filed by unethical plaintiffs, attorneys and "expert" witnesses.

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Page 1: Preventative Malpractice Insurance_02

Protecting Physicians…

Relentlessly Protecting Physicians’ Most Precious Asset – Their Reputation…

Page 2: Preventative Malpractice Insurance_02

Patented systems & endorsed by numerous state & specialty societies

www.medicaljustice.com

Road Map

• Medical Justice today– 6 years of experience; launched 2002– Deterrence; early action; hold unethical proponents of frivolous

lawsuits accountable; neutralize defamation on the Internet

• Medical Justice tomorrow– HealthCare 2.0: Market based healthcare model for all stakeholders– Existing $2 trillion will fund U.S. system +

• Health information technology• No-fault remedies for all injured patients • Patient safety systems • Pay for all uninsureds

Page 3: Preventative Malpractice Insurance_02

Patented systems & endorsed by numerous state & specialty societies

www.medicaljustice.com

Tort System: Lofty Goals

– Deter Negligent Acts

– Restitution• These goals are not realized in the medical malpractice

arena;

• The tort system makes it harder to implement systemic changes for patient safety

• Remedies for patients are inconsistent. Many receive payment only years after they file for bankruptcy.

Page 4: Preventative Malpractice Insurance_02

Patented systems & endorsed by numerous state & specialty societies

www.medicaljustice.com

Bad Doctors…Really?

• In 2004, the National Practitioner’s Data Bank had over 200,000 entries for physicians who had settled or lost in court…..– Most physicians had one report

– ~700,000 physicians in the US

– Majority of those who are sued do not represent “the bad apples”

Page 5: Preventative Malpractice Insurance_02

Patented systems & endorsed by numerous state & specialty societies

www.medicaljustice.com

What Is Medical Justice?

Medical Justice is a patented program designed to protect physicians’ reputations

• Keep physicians from being sued for frivolous reasons.

• Deter defamation of doctors on the Internet

Launched in 2002 and currently serves just under 2,000 physician members across the country.

Page 6: Preventative Malpractice Insurance_02

Patented systems & endorsed by numerous state & specialty societies

www.medicaljustice.com

Goals of Medical Justice: Frivolous Lawsuits

• Deterrence of lawsuits.• Promote system where experts “tell the truth.”• If frivolous suit continues forward, enable

prosecution of viable countersuit/counterclaim.

Page 7: Preventative Malpractice Insurance_02

Patented systems & endorsed by numerous state & specialty societies

www.medicaljustice.com

How We Do It: Novel Solution

Ignore traditional remedies (eg: malicious prosecution)

1. Focus on expert witness

2. Contract with patients

Page 8: Preventative Malpractice Insurance_02

Patented systems & endorsed by numerous state & specialty societies

www.medicaljustice.com

Expert Witnesses

• Without physician experts, meritless cases die• Hired guns

– What are they?

• Witnesses Having Other Rational Explanations

– Credibility based on membership in good standing in medical professional societies

Page 9: Preventative Malpractice Insurance_02

Patented systems & endorsed by numerous state & specialty societies

www.medicaljustice.com

Patient Contract Templates

• Will use expert who is member of and follows code of ethics for defendant’s specialty society

• Easy to implement.– “Office staff- friendly”

– “Patient-friendly”

Page 10: Preventative Malpractice Insurance_02

Patented systems & endorsed by numerous state & specialty societies

www.medicaljustice.com

Medical Justice Track Record: Deterrence

• Aggregate suit rate for Medical Justice plan members across all states– under 1% for doctors who reliably use patient contracts

– Medical Justice specialty mix:

• 40% “high risk” surgical specialists

Page 11: Preventative Malpractice Insurance_02

Patented systems & endorsed by numerous state & specialty societies

www.medicaljustice.com

Medical Justice Track Record

• Numerous plaintiff’s experts disciplined for delivering frivolous testimony. – Venues for potential redress:

• medical specialty societies,

• hospital credentialing committees, and

• medical licensing boards.

Page 12: Preventative Malpractice Insurance_02

Patented systems & endorsed by numerous state & specialty societies

www.medicaljustice.com

Results

• Case CL: Pre-existing case (PE Shield): Ohio Physician sued for lap-cholecystectomy.

– Plaintiff’s expert:

• Claimed “risk of infection”: stone fell into peritoneal cavity SEVEN years earlier

• Medical Justice plan purchased

• In court, expert stated that now NINE years had passed, risk of infection was low…..No negligence.

Page 13: Preventative Malpractice Insurance_02

Patented systems & endorsed by numerous state & specialty societies

www.medicaljustice.com

Time Versus Likelihood of Infection

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

Year Post-Op

Lik

elih

oo

d In

fec

tio

n

N=1

Joined Medical Justice

Page 14: Preventative Malpractice Insurance_02

Patented systems & endorsed by numerous state & specialty societies

www.medicaljustice.com

PEER Program: Another Value-Added

• Physician Enlisted Expert Review Program• Medical Justice volunteers: provide review and

testimony at no charge.• Can honestly say on the stand did not receive typical

$10k for their testimony.

Page 15: Preventative Malpractice Insurance_02

Patented systems & endorsed by numerous state & specialty societies

www.medicaljustice.com

The Landscape in 2008

• Tort reform - many victories for MDs– Addresses severity of cases enabling premium relief

– But, at any one moment, 50,000 open med mal cases

• Challenges to caps in courts and legislatures– South Dakota,Wisconsin, Oregon, Georgia, Illinois

• Physician rating sites/anonymous blogging exploding

Page 16: Preventative Malpractice Insurance_02

Patented systems & endorsed by numerous state & specialty societies

www.medicaljustice.com

Summary

• Deterrence*** – meritless lawsuits and anonymous blogging

• Early Action

• Justice