The Academy of Medicine of Cleveland & Northern Ohio (AMCNO) Continues to Advocate for Mandatory Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) in our Region

The Academy of Medicine of Cleveland & Northern Ohio (AMCNO) Continues to Advocate for Mandatory Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) in our Region

The Good News

The good news is that tort reform works. Based upon the Ohio Department of Insurance (ODI) Closed Claims Data report indemnity payment and loss costs are lower since SB 281 became effective. The report also shows that since the inception of SB 281, which included a cap on non-economic damages, overall payments are trending downward - with the average payments to claimants down from $270,000 to $170,000 and the average allocated loss adjustment expense down from $25,000 to $9,000 per claim. 

The Bad News

The bad news is that based upon a statewide comparison more than half the claims, (2,561) were filed in Northeast Ohio. In fact, one-half of the costs for both indemnity and expenses are generated from claims in Northeastern Ohio. The report shows physicians in Northeastern Ohio paying the highest average indemnity - about $303,000 per claimant. In addition, physicians in Northeastern Ohio are still paying the highest rates in the state - in some instances as much as two times higher than other physicians in the same specialties across Ohio. This data is confirmed in the November 1, 2006 medical malpractice comparison report also just released by the ODI. 

More Work to Be Done

The AMCNO is a strong advocate for alternative dispute resolution versus the traditional tort reform system. The ODI closed claim report clearly showed that while most medical malpractice claims are closed with no payments to claimants, almost ALL claims generated expenses for investigation and defense. The ODI report also showed that nearly five percent of the claims were adjudicated through some form of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) process. The AMCNO is a proponent and committed advocate for the use of alternative dispute resolution versus the traditional tort reform system. 

Physicians in our region continue to lose ground in the struggle to pay medical liability rates. We continue to hear from our members that medical liability is still their number one expense and their number one practice issue. That is why the AMCNO was the driving organization behind SB 88 - the mandatory arbitration bill sponsored by Senator Kevin Coughlin, which has already passed by the Ohio Senate and currently under review in the House Judiciary Committee. "Some form of ADR process must be found to handle medical liability matters," said John A. Bastulli, M.D., chair of the AMCNO Legislative Committee. "ADR would move cases through faster and at less cost," Bastulli continued. 

ADR works in other venues in the United States, and the AMCNO believes that there is no reason it should not be tried in the medical liability arena. 

The Academy of Medicine of Cleveland &Northern Ohio supports local physicians in being strong advocates for all patients as well as promoting the practice of the highest quality of medicine. AMCNO advocates on behalf of its more than 4,000 members as the region's premier professional medical society since its founding in 1824.