Medical malpractice insurance, a type of insurance that medical practitioners purchase to protect them from lawsuits, has been an issue in this country for many years. In Illinois, the debate on medical malpractice caps is heating up – again.

Back and forth…

On November 13th 2007, a Cook County Illinois judge ruled that some medical malpractice caps are unconstitutional because limiting damages for pain and suffering (known as non-economic damages) in medical malpractice cases violate the rights of victims. The constitutionality of caps in Illinois is an issue that has gone back and forth between the legislature and judges.

The legislature passed a cap law back in 1997 which was later ruled unconstitutional by Illinois judges. Then, in 2005, the legislature passed another cap law which limited damages to $500,000 against doctors and $1,000,000 against hospitals. That law has not been challenged until recently when a woman experienced complications from her pregnancy and her doctor failed to act quickly enough – leaving the baby with severe brain damage.

Illinois’ med mal statistics

Illinois legislators passed the 2005 law in response to complaints from both patients and doctors over increasing malpractice insurance rates that drove many doctors out of state – leaving patients with limited care. But, how many claims were actually filed?

According to a 2003 report from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), malpractice claims brought against physicians, dentists and nurses in Illinois from 1990 – 2003 were:

• 8,151 claims were made against physicians
• 1,317 claims were made against dentists
• 164 claims were made against nurses

Damage amounts from those claims vary, but it’s usually the cases with very high damage awards that make headlines and portray the problem as something that’s gotten out of hand. In reality, juries routinely award damages that are not remarkable. So, the question becomes – is it fair to limit damages to a patient whose life has been compromised, or even taken, due to the negligence of someone in the medical field?

Regardless of what happens in Illinois, it is a battle that is likely to rage on for quite some time – not only in Illinois, but across the nation as well.