A tale of two states: Different approaches to tort reform

The liability crisis hits physicians nationwide, but the best of rates are in Wisconsin and the worst of rates are in Pennsylvania.

By Tanya Albert, AMNews staff. May 12, 2003.

In July, Pennsylvania orthopedic surgeon Shawn P. Hennigan, MD, and his family will pack up, leave the place they've called home almost their entire lives and move to Wisconsin.

It wasn't a love of the Green Bay Packers or the promise of the fresh cheese and milk the dairy state is famous for that lured them hundreds of miles from friends and family. It's the low medical liability insurance rates.

"I tried. I really tried," said Dr. Hennigan, who spent the last two years immersed in an attempt to change the system. He wrote letters, talked to patients and lobbied Pennsylvania legislators about the medical liability insurance problems physicians there face.

"It has been the single biggest aspect of my life the last 18 months. It has transcended everything," Dr. Hennigan said.

Despite his efforts, there was no evidence that the liability climate in Pennsylvania would improve. Dr. Hennigan's premiums were set to go up another 15% this year. So he and his wife decided it was time to move and began researching their options. Based on state laws and other factors, Dr. Hennigan ultimately picked Wisconsin.

Financially, it makes sense.

The difference between the two states is startling. Pennsylvania's general surgeons, obstetricians-gynecologists and internists consistently saw the biggest increases in their insurance premiums, and Wisconsin doctors consistently saw the smallest increases between 1998 and 2002, according to an American Medical News analysis of insurance premium data from the Medical Liability Monitor.