Lawyers' Call to Arms

President Obama's nod to medical malpractice costs in his speech the other night is sending a jolt to the country's trial lawyers.

The issue was non-existent during the debate this year until it became part of the explosive congressional town hall meetings this summer. But what appears to be a bone thrown to Republicans in Congress to build support for the president's reform is a call to arms for the nation's trial lawyers, a powerful lobby with millions to spend.

"It is a complete distraction and we don't think it should be part of the debate," says Anthony Tarricone, president of the trial lawyers' lobbying group American Association for Justice. "We're going to continue to get our message out."

Tarricone declines to be specific, saying only "all options are open," including TV ads. The group plans to "educate" the public and certainly Democrats in Congress, who count on the association's financial support. The group is the top lobbyist for trial lawyers, reporting $2.27 million in lobbying expenses for the first half of this year, the Center for Responsive Politics reports.

That figure is less than half the amount spent last year, when it recorded $5.38 million in expenses, but, then again, the malpractice issue wasn't even on the table earlier this year.

Likewise, the association is a major donor to Democrats, giving $2.85 million for the 2008 election, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. The group, formerly known as the Association of Trial Lawyers of America, gave $140,750 to Republicans in that election cycle.

Doctors groups say that malpractice lawsuits cost the health care system billions both in actual legal costs and in "defensive medicine," which means doctors perform scores of unnecessary tests and make referrals only to protect themselves from patient lawsuits. While the American Medical Association is backing President's Obama's reform some state medical groups oppose it, in part, because there's no provision to curb trial payouts to patients in malpractice suits.

"Defensive medicine adds billions of dollars to the cost of health care each year, translating into higher health insurance premiums for patients," Dr. William H. Fleming III, president of the Texas Medical Association says in a letter to the state's congressional delegation last month.

The Texas doctors say they won't support Obama's health plan unless malpractice reform is enacted, including caps on jury payouts to patients in liability lawsuits. In Texas, jury awards in suits against doctors are limited to $250,000 per claim.

"I have to commend (Obama) for realizing medical malpractice liability is a factor but I think he really came up short," Dr. Fleming says in an interview. "From my standpoint, anything short of what we have in Texas is not going to work."

With so much money given to Democrats, it's difficult to see how any substantial change in law would take place while the party controls the White House and Congress.

"Our members have always supported candidates and members of Congress who support the American justice system," Tarricone says. "They will continue to do that."