Oregon appeals court strikes down state liability limits

Doctors fear that the ruling will result in more lawsuits and discourage them from providing care at public institutions.

By Amy Lynn Sorrel, AMNews staff. Oct. 9, 2006.

Oregon physicians are concerned that a recent appeals court decision striking down part of a statute that limits the liability of state agencies could mean more lawsuits against individual doctors who work for public health institutions.

In Clarke v. Oregon Health & Science University, the Court of Appeals of Oregon upheld the $200,000 overall damage cap that applies to government entities. But judges ruled that plaintiffs could pursue separate claims for unlimited damages against the individual doctors the public medical institution employs.

Before the ruling, the Oregon Tort Claims Act let the state entity substitute itself as a defendant for its employees. Plaintiffs could recover damages of $100,000 per individual found to be negligent, up to $500,000.

But the appeals court ruled in July that this part of the statute was unconstitutional because it deprived plaintiffs of the right to a jury trial and appropriate compensation for injuries from the individual defendants responsible for the alleged negligence.

Doctors say they are not panicking yet because under the law, government entities are responsible for covering any awards against their contracted employees, said Oregon Medical Assn. Chief Operating Officer James Kronenberg.

But the OMA is concerned that in less-populated areas, public agencies might not have the resources to defend medical liability claims, leaving physician employees responsible.

Volunteer doctors, or private physicians who contract their services to a government agency but are not protected from liability in their contract, also could be vulnerable, he said.