In 2005, Illinois desperately needed medical lawsuit reform.  An out-of-control legal environment was driving doctors away from many procedures and specialties, and in some well-documented cases it drove them out of Illinois altogether.  With bipartisan support, Illinois lawmakers enacted a comprehensive statute to address the crisis – over squeals of protest from personal injury lawyers.

These lawyers then worked the courts to have this law thrown out, just when it was helping make medical care more widely available in Illinois.  They did it because while lawsuit reforms are good for health care, they’re bad for the lawsuit business. 

The truth is that our medical liability crisis is disturbingly real.  The crisis had been in retreat since 2005, with many indications that reforms were working as intended. With overturn of the law, there is already speculation that we will soon be returning to the worst of times for patients.

Even worse, trial attorneys don’t acknowledge the lawsuit problem.  In their eyes, our broken system of medical justice is working just fine.  They believe that if after five years of suing a doctor, a jury finds no fault whatsoever by the physician, then there’s no harm done.  Physicians make their living improving the lives of their patients and their communities, treating disease, creating jobs, and saving lives.  When mistakes are made, the courts are there to ensure that patients are compensated fully and fairly for all economic losses they suffer as a result.   Throwing this system out of balance by demanding multimillion-dollar “pain and suffering” judgments jeopardizes the health care resources on which all of us depend.

How long can we play this game?  While doctors are committed to the best care for our patients, many highly competent, professional and caring physicians start and end their days thinking about the threat of a lawsuit. Faced with a similar threat, who wouldn’t give strong consideration to leaving Illinois, or maybe getting out of medicine altogether through early retirement?  Another common way physicians have coped with this crisis is to simply stop performing riskier procedures. However, patient need for these procedures remains unabated.

When doctors stop practicing, restrict their activities or leave the state out of fear of being ruined by a lawsuit, personal injury lawyers who caused the problem cannot fill the void by treating patients.  Only physicians can perform this vital service.  Since plaintiffs’ attorneys clearly have no intention of slowing down for the good of the people of Illinois, legislative solutions must again be pursued.  We cannot afford to let this crisis continue. Therefore, we will continue to work tirelessly for fairness in the courts and preserving patient access to care.