Patients suffering because of legal climate, doctors say

By BONNA de la CRUZ
Staff Writer for the Tennessean.com
January 22, 2005


Tennessee physicians group seeks to cap malpractice awards

Patients are not getting the care they need — from specialty surgeries to C-sections — and doctors are leaving high-risk practices.

Their voices edged with frustration, physicians gathering in Nashville yesterday said that's the situation in Tennessee, and they blamed the high cost of malpractice insurance brought on by runaway judgments in lawsuits.

At a forum sponsored by the Tennessee Medical Association and attended by about 450 physicians, doctors from all corners of Tennessee described a climate of fear that they said ultimately results in higher costs for patients.

The doctors' group has made capping non-economic damages at $250,000 its top priority this year and fingered trial lawyers as the enemy in their cause.

Tennessee is one of 24 states that shows signs of facing a crisis, said Dr. John Nelson, president of the American Medical Association, who spoke to the group via telephone.

Mike Murphy, a lobbyist for the Tennessee Trial Lawyers Association, said the Volunteer State does not have a problem with runaway juries and malpractice rates here are lower than in surrounding states.

''I don't think limiting people's rights and rewarding people who hurt other people ought to be done on anecdotes. We need to get the facts,'' Murphy said.

Doctors shared powerful anecdotes during the meeting yesterday to help build their case.

In rural spots such as East Tennessee's Cocke County, physicians who deliver babies are a dying breed, said Dr. Ed Capparelli.

When he started practicing there 12 years ago, there was one obstetrician and a dozen family physicians who delivered babies. Today, he said, there's not a single obstetrician and just five physicians, himself included, left to do the job.

''We've reached a point of crisis in the rural counties of Tennessee because of higher costs,'' said Capparelli, who works in Newport, Tenn., for Rural Medical Services Inc.

Dr. Jimmy Carter of Rutherford County said he has stopped performing two types of specialty laparoscopic surgeries and will not take up stomach-reduction surgeries for obese patients. Performing those life-saving surgeries would double the cost of his malpractice insurance, and the risks would expose him to more lawsuits.

''I feel shame about that. I feel sad about that,'' said Carter, a general surgeon.

The 45-year-old surgeon said, ''We are put in an enormously unhealthy environment by the risks posed by malpractice. We have to feel free in our souls and in our minds to give our absolute best, our courageous best, to our patients, and if we're constantly at risk, we stop doing the risky things.''

State Sen. Mark Norris, R-Collierville, an advocate for helping doctors with medical malpractice, said legislation to cap damages probably won't move forward in the General Assembly until next year.

Proponents are laying the groundwork now by educating lawmakers and trying to build consensus, he said. A legislative study is under way to collect more information about lawsuits and damage awards.

Bonna de la Cruz can be reached at 726-4892 or bdelacruz@tennessean.com.