The doctors and lawyers are at it again in Hartford fighting over malpractice laws. Doctors want to maintain the current law's rigorous standards that must be met to certify that a suit has merit to move forward.
Because this curbs their power to sue doctors, the trial lawyers are asking for an extra year (even though they already are allowed two years) to get their suits certified. The additional year gives them more time to shake physicians down with more depositions, more allegations, more threats, more waiting, and more worrying about what the final outcome will be.
It is admirable that the trial lawyers are looking for new ways to help their clients. But if the lawyers need three years to find someone who can certify that malpractice has occurred, one wonders if they really have a case or do they just want one more year to antagonize doctors.
Perhaps the system would work better with "health courts" that dealt only with malpractice. Presided over by judges that were specifically trained in malpractice, "health courts" could lessen hostilities and settle cases in months not years. By using medical experts appointed by, accountable to, and paid for by the court, not by the lawyers, health courts could lower administrative costs and legal fees. And the financial settlements would be more reasonable. Lawmakers should think seriously about health courts.
Edward Volpintesta, MD
Bethel