State damage caps linked to boost in physician supply

States with caps on pain and suffering awards in malpractice lawsuits have more physicians per capita than other states, a government study found.

By Tanya Albert, AMNews staff. July 28, 2003.

Physicians seem to flock to states with caps on pain and suffering awards in medical liability lawsuits. There are about 12% more physicians per capita in states with damage caps than in states without caps, according to a study released in July by the Health and Human Services' Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

Alaska had caps in 2000, as did California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, Montana, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia and Wisconsin.

These states averaged 135 physicians per 100,000 citizens per county. States without caps averaged 120 physicians per 100,000 citizens per county, according to the study.

This disparity in physician supply was not seen before caps began being enacted.

In 1970, states that now have caps had 69 physicians per 100,000 citizens per county and states that have not adopted caps in the past three decades averaged 67 physicians per 100,000 citizens per county, the analysis shows.

"This study confirms and quantifies the association between reasonable limits in medical lawsuits and the supply of physicians available to treat patients who need them," HHS Secretary Tommy G. Thompson said in a statement.