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Health & Fitness

Reversing Missouri's Physician Shortage

Missouri’s medical system is only as good as its healthcare professionals, but unfortunately, the high cost of medical malpractice premiums in Missouri is forcing physicians out of the state. For those who do remain in Missouri, time that should be spent with patients is consumed by paperwork and unnecessary preventative measures to avoid lawsuits.

To protect our healthcare professionals from frivolous lawsuits and encourage them to remain in our state, the Missouri House of Representatives perfected, or approved with amendments, House Bill 1173, sponsored by Representative Eric Burlison (R-Springfield). This legislation caps non-economic medical damages at $350,000 but does not limit the economic damages, such as lost wages, that a jury can award in cases of true medical negligence.

After Texas limited non-economic damages, license applications for physicians increased 83% as medical malpractice insurance premiums dropped by an average of 21%. When Missouri instituted a similar cap in 2005, doctors stopped leaving and started coming to the state, and the cost of care decreased because malpractice insurance costs declined.  The Missouri Supreme Court decision that struck down those caps in July 2012 left doctors vulnerable again, and many physicians left our state for Oklahoma, Kansas, and Arkansas, which have malpractice caps in place.

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We must act to reverse this trend because 80% of Missouri has been labeled a Health Provider Shortage Area by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Additionally, each doctor in Missouri supports an additional 5.8 jobs, $850,000 in wages and benefits, and $52,000 in state tax revenue.

If we want medical professionals to remain in Missouri, we have to reinstate reasonable liability limits so that our healthcare professionals can spend their time investing in quality care rather than in legal defense funds.

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