He said there were about 150 doctors present from all parts of New Jersey. "We discussed their plan of action--what they are going to do. And there was a unanimous endorsement of the job action they planned," Dr. Rigolosi said.

He explained that, in essence, the job action, the length of which is undetermined, would involve doctors not performing elective procedures.

"There will be emergency care available to anyone who needs it. Patients who are in hospitals will be taken care of. Patients who are on dialysis or are receiving chemotherapy will be taken care of. But any routine procedures, elective office visits, will be postponed," Dr. Rigolosi said.

Currently, there are some 8500 member physicians in the state medical society, Dr. Rigolosi added, and it appears that the majority of them will participate in the Feb. 3 work stoppage.

"There was a broad representation of physicians at yesterday's meeting. The job action was supported by every medical specialty that exists in the state. The majority of our members will participate in the work stoppage--it will be thousands of doctors from every part of the state," he said.

Dr. Rigolosi said the planned work stoppage--which would last at least a week--is not being organized by a single group, but rather by a statewide, grass-roots effort.

"We are strongly supportive of the job action, but we are not organizing it. It's organized by county societies, hospital presidents and by medical society members themselves from different parts of the state. But they are all following the same template: emergencies and life-saving and life-sustaining procedures will be taken care of, and they will have on-call physicians," he noted.

Dr. Rigolosi said the planned work stoppage is the last measure for doctors in his state.

"We have been talking to state officials. We have spoken to the governor as well. But their response has been that they still don't want to have a cap on non-economic damages, which we believe is what's needed to stabilize the system. Millions of dollars in punitive damages are bankrupting the system, but lawmakers, unfortunately, are predominantly lawyers and they don't want to do this," he said.

Dr. Alan Zaccaria, a plastic surgeon in the Monmouth County town of Little Silver and one of the job action organizers, said the doctors planning a work stoppage have received a full endorsement from the trustees of the Medical Society of New Jersey.

"All the counties in the state are supportive of this. And doctors from all counties and all specialties, not just surgeons, will participate. On Feb. 3, we will shut down all non-essential services, close our offices, and not schedule elective procedures," Dr. Zaccaria said.

He said that through the work stoppage, doctors hope to increase the public and legislative awareness as to the severity of the problem the New Jersey physicians are facing.

"We can no longer afford medical malpractice insurance premiums. And this is driving physicians out of the state, forcing them into an early retirement, and forcing them to change the scope of their practice--limiting high-risk procedures, for example," Dr. Zaccaria said.

"The message we want to get out is that without immediate relief in the form of effective tort reform, which would include a cap on pain and suffering, we will not be able to deliver the quality health care New Jersey citizens have grown accustomed to," he said.

Dr. Zaccaria also noted that the recent walkout by some two dozen West Virginia surgeons to protest high medical malpractice insurance costs provided a spark for New Jersey doctors to act.

"It was a necessary action. And because of the timely nature of their walkout, it got the ball rolling here as well," he said.

Dr. Zaccaria said he hopes doctors' job action in his state will get the attention of the state legislature, as it did in West Virginia. Last Friday, West Virginia's House of Representatives approved a measure that sets a cap on non-economic damages and makes other changes designed to lower the cost of malpractice insurance. The bill is now before the State Senate.

Prior to the doctors meeting Sunday, State Health and Senior Services Commissioner Clifton R. Lacy issued a statement saying his department disagrees with the physicians' plans to stage a work stoppage.

"Medical malpractice insurance issues are already receiving enormous attention from DHSS, Department of Banking and Insurance, the Legislature and the health care leadership of this state. In addition, we have significant concerns that a work stoppage could negatively affect patients access to physicians.

This administration has worked in good faith with New Jersey doctors on this national problem. We will continue to work with our physician colleagues on meaningful solutions. While this progresses, the physician community of New Jersey should not pursue a work stoppage, but rather continue to actively discuss the short- and long-term solutions to the medical malpractice insurance problem," the statement said.

Meanwhile, in Rhode Island, the Rhode Island Medical Society began running newspaper ads warning that the public's access to quality care in the state is being impacted by rising malpractice insurance rates.