AMA supports House-passed bill on medical liability

“For too long, our broken medical liability system has resulted in increased health care costs and slowed access to care for patients,” said AMA President David O. Barbe, M.D. “This legislation is an important step toward fixing that system — a step that reins in defensive medicine, reduces the growth of health care costs, and strikes the correct balance by promoting speedier resolutions of disputes — while maintaining an injured patient’s access to just compensation. By redirecting health care spending from defensive medicine, additional dollars can go to patient care, safety and quality improvements, and to health information technology systems that would help improve care and outcomes.”