In a message dated 97-07-30 00:33:36 EDT, joe-schneider@nwu.edu (Joseph
Schneider) writes:
<< my friends and acquaintances in Canada (including two vascular surgeons at
U of Toronto and another at East Toronto General) pay malpractice premiums
that are less than 10% of mine, I believe it's because plaintiffs'
attorneys are predators in this country >>
I disagree. No plaintiff's attorney brings a suit without a plaintiff (your
patient) pushing him to do it. That is where the "predators" are. And what
makes them predatory? Could it have something to do with the fact that:
Doctors act as if they were Gods; they make you wait weeks for an
appointment and then hours after that appointment time in their waiting rooms
(see how fast a lawyer would get fired by a client he did this to) and then
often just dismiss the patient with a cursory exam, and no opportunity for
discussion; The AMA strictly controls medical school admissions to protect
their monopoly (and every Doctor's God given right to make $600,000 or more a
year - currently earning a national average about 4 times the national
average for lawyers) resulting in a flood of foreign doctors (I cant remember
seeing more than a handful of non-foreign doctors in the last 10 years) and a
shortage of doctors in small towns, when very well qualified US students
cant get into medical schools?
These "Predatory" patients feel victimized when the doctor's fee for a two
hour operation, with one follow up visit, is over $6,000: and you call
lawyers predators?
The cost of legal fees has not kept pace with inflation for many years. The
cost of medical care has far exceeded the inflation rate.
Yes people are pissed off enough about lawyers to make jokes about them, but
they are pissed off enough about doctors to sue them whenever they get the
chance, and to rule against them when they serve on a jury. And doctors,
IMHO screw up more than they should because they are too busy. The
Plaintiff's lawyers don't get paid unless they win. Medical malpraactice
lawyers that I have talked to say that for this reason they turn down many
more cases than they take- they only want to take sure winners. And finally,
I am told that they could not win their cases without expert testimony FROM
OTHER DOCTORS who say that the doctor screwed up, on the basis of established
knowledge and procedures. More predators I guess.
And finally, Canada has a nationalized medical program where doctors do not
have the same incentives to restrict the number of doctors, grossly
overcharge patients, and take on too much work. There is the real reason for
the lower insurance premiums. Predatory lawyers my ass! YOU are the
problem, buddy, and the problem will exist until you clean house, or the
insurance companies and government clean it for you.
Flamethrower Off, Nomex on.
Paul S. Vander Woude
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