MICRA Under Attack; Changing/Overturning MICRA Impedes Access to Health Care for Californians May 10, 2013 Advocacy, MICRA, News, Politics and Medicine Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act , medical malpractice, MICRA, professional liability 0 California’s trial attorneys launched an all-out assault on California's historic tort reform law, which since 1975 has helped keep malpractice premiums in-check and ensured that California’s patients have access to affordable health care. The Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act (MICRA) has helped contain health costs and reduce frivolous lawsuits — but trial lawyers want to change the law. If successful, the trial attorney’s efforts will cause malpractice rates to skyrocket, and recreate the same conditions that threatened to throw California’s health care system into crisis during the early 1970s. Prior to MICRA, out-of-control medical liability costs were forcing community clinics, health centers, physicians and other health care providers out of practice. California’s MICRA has been a national success story with broad public support and has safeguarded both patients and our health care delivery system for decades. Risky reforms like the ones being threatened by the trial lawyers would severely impede our state’s ability to provide health care to the poorest and most vulnerable patients. At a time when we are trying to implement federal health care reform and provide access to health care to all Californians, this is the worst possible overreach at the worst possible time. "The threat of a ballot measure is nothing more than a money grab by trial lawyers," says CMA President Paul R. Phinney, MD. "And one that that will come at the expense of higher health costs for all patients and decreased access for patients and clinics already struggling to keep their doors open. We cannot and will not let that happen." Click here for more information on MICRA, and what you can do to help in the fight. Comments are closed.
