The October 21 edition of HartfordBusiness.com features an interview with Common Good founder and chair, Philip K. Howard that includes a discussion about establishing health courts to help curb rising health care costs. Common Good is a “nonpartisan, nonprofit legal reform coalition.”
According to Howard, judges dedicated full-time to resolving health care disputes would preside over these state courts, which would be “staffed with neutral medical experts who could provide their expertise as needed.” The judges would issue written rulings to provide guidance on proper standards of care and resolve cases based on sound science, and these rulings would set precedents for patients and doctors.
Howard believes that health courts would speed malpractice suits. By creating clear standards of care, the courts could allow judges to dispose of weak and invalid claims quickly, while encouraging doctors and insurers to settle cases where the doctor was unambiguously at fault. Howard also believes that health courts could also reduce defensive medical practices, which he estimates cost as much as $200 billion annually.
