Well, this is something I would normally refrain from doing. However, this issue is too important to me to just let it go. There is a proposed amendment on the Florida ballot during these elections. It is Amendment 3. This amendment is aimed at capping the attorney's fee in a medical malpractice case. It is being presented to people as an amendment that will give more money to people and less money to "greedy lawyers." That is a total misrepresentation of what this amendment will do. Here are a couple of reasons why you should vote NO on Amendment 3:
1. There is something inherently wrong with limiting the amount of money a person is allowed to earn for doing their job. If we start here, where are we going to end?
2. If Amendment 3 passes, it will not be profitable for attorneys to take these cases since they are very expensive and time-consuming to litigate.
3. If Amendment 3 passes, it will be harder for injured victims to find legal representation because attorneys will not want to become involved in costly litigation since it will not be profitable.
4. If Amendment 3 passes, victims of medical negligence will be left with little or no choice when trying to receive compensation for their injuries.
Please vote NO on Amendment 3. As for the Walrustitties issue, I haven't made up my mind yet.
Thanks.
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6 comments:
Grownzup, Grownzup, GROWNZUP!!! Let me begin by saying that I do love you and I'm excited about your upcoming wedding. With that disclaimer out of the way...it's on biatch!!! This is a website amongst friends so I feel as though it would only be fair to give another perspective so that these educated men can make a good informed decision on Nov 2, 2004.
1. Amendment 3 will not violate the capitalistic right that attorneys exercise so frequently. The will not be limited in the amount of money they can earn. It will assure the victims of medical malpractice that they receive a fair portion of money from their suffering and that lawyers do not add extra insult to injury by gouging them with ridiculous percentages.
2. The whole point of the law is so that lawyers stop taking frivolous lawsuits and stick to cases where there was a real medical error. If a patient was truly wronged, a lawyer can take the case and still get a % of the settlement that can exceed many millions of dollars. Malpractice does happen and when it does it is only fair for the victims to be compensated...that will not change because of amendment 3!
3. There are still going to be plenty of lawyers for injured victims to find legal representation. Have you ever looked in a phonebook and seen how many there are to choose??? (of course if you want a good lawyer I recommend Jose Negroni : )
4. Young physicians like yours truly are already going to be stuck paying a sh!# of $$$ for insurance regardless of this amendment, but this could slow down the rate of increase (projections show that it won't even reduce what it costs for malpractice insurance). Don't you think it's scary that OB/GYNs are stopping to deliver babies in some hospitals? They all blame the attorneys for taking so many frivolous law suits. Even if they didn't do anything wrong, if a claim is made...the rates go up! Did I mention that Dr. Rios is an OB/GYN?
Okay...enough...you guys know what you have to do to fight evil in this world...just kidding. My advice is to ignore all the stupid ads that try to skew you one way or another. Ask Grownz up and ask me what we think and of course we are going to have different points of view. All I ask is that you take a look at the big picture and come to conclusion that you feel comfortable making. Okay, back to studying...I've got a big test tomorrow and voting on amendment 3 isn't going to change that fact.
Oh, I almost forgot...vote yes on Walrustitties!!! Can we get that picture posted on this page please?
Oh boy, this could get ugly.
I love you too Migueli, but I must disagree.
1. By implying that frivolous lawsuits are so common, you are essentially crucifying the legal system and its control measures. There are, and have been, serious sanctions in place for attorneys that file frivolous lawsuits. This amendment does not change that. By working in the legal field on a daily basis, I truly see what a claim must endure before it becomes a lawsuit. This includes some serious scrutiny from the defendant's insurance company. Assuming the attorney is able to fool these individuals, then you have to go before a judge. This judge will again scrutinize the case and decide whether it has enough merit to face a jury. Assuming the attorney is also able to fool this highly trained individual, then you get to a jury trial. However, don't forget that defense attorneys, who earn their money by defeating lawsuits, will pick your case apart and expose any inconsistency to the jury. Then you have to convince six complete strangers that your frivolous lawsuit is legit. Don't forget about the defense attorney who also gets to talk to the jury. If you are somehow able to get past all these people and get a favorable verdict in a frivolous lawsuit, then you still have to face an appeals court. This means you go before three judges who once again scrutinize your case. Don't forget about that defense lawyer that's going to be there every step of the way.
As you can see, it's extremely hard to get a plaintiff verdict in a regular case, and it's nearly impossible to do so in a frivolous case. I admit, it has been done before, but not in the outrageous numbers cited by proponents of Amendment 3.
2. The reason why medical malpractice insurance is so expensive is not because of lawyers or frivolous lawsuits. These companies take in payments from their customers, then they invest the money and try to make even more money there. In the last few years, it is no secret the stock market has not done very well. These companies have suffered tremendous losses of the money they had invested. The only way they know how to recoup this money is by increasing the premiums for their customers. Of course, you can't tell the doctors that. So what's the easy way of explaining the increase? Blame those greedy lawyers. Everybody hates them already, so why not? It makes perfect sense. In essence, these insurance companies are abusing the trust they have from doctors and pointing the finger elsewhere.
3. A medical malpractice case is very expensive to prosecute and consumes an enormous amount of time. Most of the lawyers you find in the yellow pages do not even do these types of cases since they don't have the resources available to endure costly & lengthy litigation. It is not uncommon for a lawyer to pay six figures in costs just to get one of these cases to trial. At the end, if the lawyer loses the trial, he recoups nothing. Not his time, not his costs, nothing. In a world where people's views are so often skewed against lawyers, the risk of losing a case is already huge. It is a fact that juries heavily favor defendants than plaintiffs. The only way to make it worthwhile for a lawyer to undertake such a case is if the possibility of a large verdict exists. If the lawyer wins the case, he recoups his costs and is able to earn his fee. If he loses, he does not get paid once cent. It's almost like telling a doctor to perform a surgery. If the client feels better, then he gets paid. If the client does not improve, then the surgery was free. That's a risk I'm sure even the best doctors would not be willing to accept.
4. I agree that it is scary so many doctors are leaving their practices. I also don't want to see young, excellent doctors such as Migueli be forced to pay ridiculous insurance fees. Unfortunately, none of that will change with the passing of Amendment 3. This can be evidenced in several places. Over the past few years, California has placed severe limits on medical malpractice suits, including capping the amount of money a plaintiff can receive. This was all done in the hope of reducing medical malpractice insurance premiums. Did it work? Of course not. The premiums have steadily increased every year. Now California doctors, who once were made to believe these measures would save them money, are changing their minds. They realized that the insurance company just wanted to make more money all along. That is what will happen in Florida if Amendment 3 passes. The insurance premiums won't go down. The OB/GYNs won't rush back to their practices. Nothing will change except one thing - the people of Florida will lose their day in court.
5. Amendments that limit a person's ability to earn his daily bread have no place in our constitution. If it starts here, where will it stop? Will we next try to lower the salaries of doctors? Will we try to further lower the salaries of teachers? This is a dangerous step that should be avoided because it will open the door to many more frivolous amendments.
Damn that was a long post. Migueli, I think you and I are probably the only ones who will read this whole thing. Oh well, it's good to get everything out there. Good luck on your test.
Okay, we've heard from the lawyer and the doctor. Let's now hear from the MBA. Miguel, my apologies for posting prior to your rebuttal, but you're probably too busy inserting your fingers into places where the sun don't shine. I think you can both agree that there is a problem with escalating medical malpractice insurance premiums. I decided to do a bit of research for myself, and I came across this interesting article:
http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d03702.pdf
It is an objective study into investigating the causes of why malpractice insurance premiums have increased. The paragraph at the top of page 24 of the article has some interesting information. It cites several factors that have contributed to the rising premium rates, but states they were unable to gather sufficient information in order to assess the amount of impact each factor has presented.
In my opinion, probably the largest factor contributing to rising insurance premiums is our aging population. It is well-known that our population is aging. As the population increases in age, the demand for health care will rise as well. An increase in patients being treated will also present an increase in the number of malpractice lawsuits. This in turn will increase the losses that insurance companies incur, and in turn will force them to increase their premiums. I believe these statements to be a simple deduction and I hope you would agree with me.
This is economics at work here my friends. If there were any problems with lawyers or doctors making too much money, these problems existed well before insurance premiums began to rise, but I do not believe this to be the case. Knowing both lawyers and doctors, I have a lot of respect for individuals in both of these areas of business. I believe they are fairly compensated for the work they do and I do not believe this should change.
However, this does not change the fact that we have a problem and that we need to do something to alleviate this problem. Unfortunately, at the time that we need doctors the most, they are being driven out of business by escalating costs. There are probably five major solutions to be considered:
1. Regulate insurance premiums
2. Regulate attorney fees
3. Regulate health care fees
4. Develop a national health care system
4. Do nothing
None of these options will be easy to consider. Placing any sort of limits on earnings will result in tremendous losses to the affected parties and will develop new problems. I think the best solution would be to develop a national health care system, because it will not place the burden on any one specific industry. The responsibility should fall on every tax payer.
Of course, this will mean higher taxes for everyone but it is probably the best solution. Insurance, legal services and medical services are all necessary for our society to function. The problem of increasing health care costs should not be placed on any one of these industries, but should be the responsibility of the nation as a whole. It is a problem that will require more money than any of these three industries could manage alone. If any of these industries continues to suffer losses, it is only going to cause more problems for everyone.
Bryson, you only need to go here:
http://jsierra.net/gallery/Farewell-to-Juan
to view the pix from that entire weekend. The Walrus Titties are hidden within. Only a brief glance should reveal them to you. Just be ready.
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