Protect Texas Patients
Take Action to Protect Texas PatientsLawmakers misdiagnosed our health care crisis in 2003 choosing to restrict the rights of patients instead of reining in costs and improving access. As a result, families devastated by medical negligence have been denied access to our courts. Instead of helping patients, the radical legal changes have left untold numbers of patients with few options.
Meanwhile, underserved areas remain underserved and health care costs continue to rise without any measurable improvements in outcomes or quality. Texas is still struggling with a shortage of primary care doctors—the federal government has designated 114 out of Texas’s 254 counties as primary-care shortage areas and 27 counties don’t have a doctor at all. More than 25% of Texans do not have health insurance, and health care in the state is ranked 46th in the nation according to the Commonwealth Fund, a healthcare foundation.
We can’t afford to continue risking the safety of Texas patients. Approximately 200,000 people die every year from preventable mistakes and hospital-acquired infections. The Texas Medical Board, the sole remaining oversight over a patient’s care, has a reputation for tolerating doctor misconduct. In 2009, out of the almost 7,000 complaints that the Board received, only 411 doctors faced any sort of discipline, and most of these received light penalties.
Texas families deserve real reforms that strengthen accountability measures and improve the quality and access of our health care.
Looking for tips and resources on patient and nursing home safety? We’ve compiled a collection of helpful information at our brand-new Patient & Nursing Home Safety Tips page.
Have you or someone you know been a victim of medical negligence? Please share your story with us.
What You Should Know
Texas Watch has created several informational documents that explain the background and effects of stripping patients’ rights:
- Texas-Style “Reform” Fails Patients: Costs Up, Access Down
- Restricting Patient Rights Does Not Lower Health Costs: Spending Increases Faster in Texas
- Background on the Cap in Texas
- Patient Protection Facts
- Why Are Caps on Damages Bad for Texas?
- Patient Justice: Patients Are Better Off in States Without Barriers to Justice
TEXAS WATCH; January 2008 - The False Choice: Doctors or Accountability; The Real Impact of So-Called Tort “Reform” in Texas
TEXAS WATCH; February 2007 - The Real Impact of the Cap: True Stories of Texans Devastated by Medical Negligence
Read true stories about Texans whose lives have been destroyed by medical negligence but have no where to turn.
Studies & Research
Society of Actuaries Study Finds Medical Errors Annually Cost at Least $19.5 Billion Nationwide
Society of Actuaries; August 2010
Is Better Patient Safety Associated with Less Malpractice Activity?: Evidence from California
Rand Corporation (Michael D. Greenberg, Amelia M. Haviland, J. Scott Ashwood, Regan Main); April 2010
Liability Limits in Texas Fail to Curb Medical Costs
Public Citizen (David Arkush, Peter Gosselar, Christine Hines and Taylor Lincoln); December 2009
The Impact of the 2003 Texas Medical Malpractice Damages Cap on Physician Supply and Insurer Payouts: Separating Facts from Rhetoric
Charles Silver (University of Texas), David Hyman (University of Illinois), Bernard Black (Northwestern University); Fall 2008
Neglecting the Neglected: The Impact of Noneconomic Damage Caps on Meritorious Nursing Home Lawsuits
Michael Rustad and Thomas F. Lambert, Jr. (Suffolk University School of Law); January 26, 2007
The Great Medical Malpractice Hoax: NPDB Data Continue to Show Medical Liability System Produces Rational Outcomes
Public Citizen (Seth Oldmixon); January 2007
Defensive Medicine and Disappearing Doctors?: Evidence Suggests That the Malpractice Crisis Has More Complex Effects Than Are Commonly Assumed
Cato Institute (Katherine Baicker and Amitabh Chandra); Fall 2005
The Frivolous Case for Tort Law Change: Opponents of the Legal System Exaggerate Its Costs, Ignore Its Benefits
Economic Policy Institute (Lawrence Chimerine and Ross Eisenbrey); May 17, 2005
Stability, Not Crisis: Medical Malpractice Claim Outcomes in Texas, 1998-2002
Bernard S. Black (University of Texas), Charles Silver (University of Texas), David Hyman (University of Illinois), and William M. Sage (University of Texas); March 10, 2005
Medical Malpractice Briefing Book: Challenging the Misleading Claims of the Doctors’ Lobby
Public Citizen (Jackson Williams, Frank Clemente, and Neal Pattison); August 2004
Malpractice Reform Must Include Steps to Prevent Medical Injury
Annals of Internal Medicine (Stephen C. Schoenbaum, MD, MPH and Randall R. Bovberg, JD); January 2004
News Articles
Quietly, U.S. Moves to Block Lawsuits by Military Families
The Atlantic—January 31st, 2012
The Court’s Defenders: Polluters, Big Insurance, Corporate Wrongdoers
Court Watch—January 30th, 2012
AUDIO: The Texas Supreme Court Has a Profound Effect on the Everyday Lives of Texans
Texas Matters, Texas Public Radio—January 30th, 2012
Report: Texas Supreme Court Sides Against Consumers In 4 Out of 5 Cases
ThinkProgress—January 30th, 2012
AUDIO: Texas Families Deserve a Fair Shake at Texas Supreme Court & They Aren’t Getting It
KTRH—January 30th, 2012
Read all articles in Protect Texas Patients »

