There is a medical liability crisis moving across this country. Twenty states are considered to be "crisis" states and an additional 24 states are showing problem signs. Physicians in the 20 crisis states are either unable to find insurance or unable to afford insurance which has caused severe patient access problems in those states.

Fortunately, Minnesota is not a state in crisis but premiums have risen by 20 percent the last three years and some emergency medicine physicians have found it hard to find any liability coverage at all.

Nationwide polls show that in states that are in crisis patient care is affected:

• 76 percent of physicians believe that concerns about medical liability litigation has negatively impacted their ability to provide quality care (Wirthlin Worldwide Study, Apr. 2002).
• Students are reluctant to choose specialties where the risk of lawsuits is higher. 48 percent of students in their third or fourth year of medical school indicated the liability situation was a factor in their specialty choice.
• According to a survey released by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), one in seven ACOG fellows has stopped delivering babies because of fear of being sued.

The primary cause of the emerging medical liability crisis is the unrestrained escalation in jury awards that are part of a legal system that is simply out of control in many states. According to Jury Verdict Research, the median jury award increased 114 percent from 1996 to 2002. The average award reached $3.9 million in 2001 and increased to $6.2 million in 2002.

Minnesota can help ensure that we do not become a crisis state by placing a $250,000 cap on non-economic damages. Caps on non-economic damages work. Multiple studies have found that states with caps have premiums 17-30 percent lower than states without caps. States that have a cap on non-economic damages also generally have fewer claims and lower awards.

Every aspect of a malpractice award can be quantified -- except for non-economic damages. Non-economic damages are left to the whim of the jury. This increases the risk of multimillion-dollar lawsuits that could increase premiums and allow the national access crisis to spread to Minnesota.

Although caps on non-economic damages may not result in a direct decrease in premiums they will provide predictability and stability in the medical malpractice insurance market to help avert an access crisis in Minnesota.