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React Now: How This Threat Could Become a Health Care Crisis in Your Backyard

The Civil Procedural Rules Committee (Committee) has proposed changes to the rules governing appropriate venue in medical professional liability actions, which would expand the possible venues where a medical liability action can be initiated.
The Lehigh County Medical Society has joined a coalition led by the Pennsylvania Medical Society (PAMED) to oppose this rule change.

You MUST act now — EVERY physician, EVERY health care professional, EVERY patient! The only way to stop the rule change is to flood the Committee with personal comments by the Feb. 22 deadline. Help stop this threat before it becomes a crisis.

Why should I care?

Simply put: Your medical liability premiums could rise. Patient care will suffer.
All Pennsylvania physicians and patients would be affected by the consequences of this proposed rule if it is adopted.

You say all Pennsylvania physicians, but I don’t think this applies to me.

Think again!

• If you’re a young physician, you likely don’t remember the early 2000s when Pennsylvania was in the midst of a medical liability crisis – physicians were leaving the state in droves, leaving patients without their trusted physician, many of whom had long-standing relationships, and medical liability premiums were going up statewide. This proposed rule change would take us back to that time, and sometimes, as is the case here, the good old days weren’t so good.


• If you’re an employed physician, your hospital or health system likely pays your medical liability premiums. But, this change would cause rates to increase, and that money has to come from somewhere – your compensation, patient care innovations and other improvements, your employer only paying a percentage of your liability premiums and requiring you to pay the rest?

PAMED’s resources make it easy to share your comments with the Committee.
1. Go to www.pamedsoc.org/VenueRule to learn more. You can download an executive summary, a comprehensive overview, as well as take action.
2. With a few clicks, you can fill out an online form that will send your comments right to the Committee. Please personalize your comments as your personal stories will be the most impactful.