The Quality of Health Care
Medical Malpractice: An Overview of Federal and State Policy Options
Research Report
Jackson Williams, AARP Public Policy Institute
July 2005
Recent spikes in the cost of medical liability insurance have once again put medical malpractice on the legislative agenda. This AARP Public Policy Institute Issue Brief by Jackson Williams provides a broad survey of the different policy proposals and enactments addressing medical malpractice over the past 3 decades. The policy measures are grouped into 7 categories, based on the theories that underlie them, and then the arguments for and against each type are reviewed, giving the reader an idea of the conflicting values at stake. In addition, the empirical research evaluating the policies’ implementation is summarized. The principal conclusion is that there are a few policy initiatives available that do not impose costs on patients or doctors, which represent possible win-win approaches to the problem. (14 pages)
Pub ID: IB75