NU Online News Service, Sept. 14, 2:13 p.m. EDT

WASHINGTON–A trade group representing medical professional liability insurance companies pointed to a new study indicating that physicians practicing defense medicine cost the U.S. health system $45 billion annually.

The Physician Insurers Association of America said the study in the September 2010 issue of Health Affairs also found that total costs related to medical liability account for more than $55 billion, and the practice of defense medicine constituted 80 percent of that cost.

"This study supports our contention that reformation of the medical liability system would result in notable savings for Americans," said Lawrence E. Smarr, president of the PIAA.

Mr. Smarr brought up the study in urging that Congress take up tort reform as a means of curbing the current soaring cost of medical care.

"The Congressional Budget Office studied tort reform legislation last year and reported similar findings in terms of cost savings for federal health care programs," he said.

"Given the continued escalation of expenses related to the provision of health care at both the public and private level–especially as these costs relate to the practice of defensive medicine–we believe it would be prudent for the government to reexamine the impact of medical liability reform on health care costs," he said.

"Opponents of medical liability reform continue to trivialize these savings–but the fact is that a potential $55 billion a year in cost reductions is far from insignificant," he noted.

Mr. Smarr said that the vast majority of lawsuits against health care providers–while rampant–are found to be meritless.

For example, he said, recent PIAA data shows that 65 percent of medical professional liability claims were dropped, dismissed, or withdrawn–and the defense prevailed in 90 percent of the cases that were resolved by trial.

However, it still costs nearly $120,000 per claim to defend each of these meritless cases, Mr. Smarr said.

"This money could be better used to improve patient safety practices or compensate patients who have suffered actual damages," he said.

"The bottom line is that the current litigious climate limits patient access to care and has led to a significant increase in the overall cost of health care," he said.

"This is clearly a problem that needs to be addressed–and we believe that tort reform is the right solution."