Tornado Alley (PROG)

[fuagf]

CC Writer, tort costs are minimal part of healthcare costs, yet you include it as one of your
"most important" ones. Ok, i see now it's a decades long conservative talking point. Figures.

New study shows that the savings from 'tort reform' are mythical
http://www.latimes.com/business/hiltzik/la-fi-mh-another-study-shows-why-tort-reform--20140919-column.html

that's 2014. Then there's 2009 NYT

Would Tort Reform Lower Costs?

By Anne Underwood August 31, 2009 3:45 pm

[...]

On “This Week With George Stephanopoulos,” Senators Orrin G. Hatch, Republican of Utah, and John Kerry, Democrat of Massachusetts, seemed to agree that medical malpractice lawsuits are driving up health care costs and should be limited in some way. “We’ve got to find some way of getting rid of the frivolous cases, and most of them are,” Mr. Hatch said. “And that’s doable, most definitely,” Mr. Kerry replied.

But some academics who study the system are less certain. One critic is Tom Baker, a professor of law and health sciences at the University of Pennsylvania School of Law and author of “The Medical Malpractice Myth,” who believes that making the legal system less receptive to medical malpractice lawsuits will not significantly affect the costs of medical care. He spoke with the freelance writer Anne Underwood.

Q. A lot of people seem to have taken up the cause of tort reform. Why isn’t it included in the health care legislation pending on Capitol Hill?

A. Because it’s a red herring. It’s become a talking point for those who want to obstruct change. But [tort reform] doesn’t accomplish the goal of bringing down costs.

Q. Why not?

A. As the cost of health care goes up, the medical liability component of it has stayed fairly constant. That means it’s part of the medical price inflation system, but it’s not driving it. The number of claims is small relative to actual cases of medical malpractice.

Q. But critics of the current system say that 10 to 15 percent of medical costs are due to medical malpractice.

A. That’s wildly exaggerated. According to the actuarial consulting firm Towers Perrin, medical malpractice tort costs were $30.4 billion in 2007, the last year for which data are available. We have a more than a $2 trillion health care system. That puts litigation costs and malpractice insurance at 1 to 1.5 percent of total medical costs. That’s a rounding error. Liability isn’t even the tail on the cost dog. It’s the hair on the end of the tail.

More: https://prescriptions.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/08/31/would-tort-reform-lower-health-care-costs/?_r=0

Like i said you are a dyed in the wool conservative full of poor mathematics and ideological talking points.

Even doctors in defense of doctors didn't include tort as a driver ..
https://www.forbes.com/sites/realspin/2013/04/03/whos-to-blame-for-our-rising-healthcare-costs/#5b579103280c

The fact (or not) that some two thirds of Americans were against Obamacare at the beginning is irrelevant. If
it were relevant how much would the GOP's bullshit scare campaign (death panels!) have contributed to that.

I'm thinking relatively few doctors would have retired early because of an ideological
opposition to Obamacare. Some would have. Sabotage would have been in fewer minds.

Most now don't want repeal and replace. Your crowd has had 7y, yet still don't
have a better alternative. Most Americans want a fix. How do you stand on that?