Health Courts: New Articles, Upcoming Event

Common Good and their collaborators at the Harvard School of Public Health continue to build the research base and policy consensus for a new system of specialized administrative health courts. An innovative alternative to our nation's current medical liability system, health courts would apply rational, consistent standards to resolving medical liability claims and compensating injury patients. Their efforts are reflected in three recently published articles -- two in the Journal of Health Politics, Policy and Law and one in Wyoming Law Review.

"Administrative Compensation of Medical Injuries" looks at the history of administrative compensation proposals over the last 30 years and examines the success of the administrative compensation model in fields like worker's compensation, vaccine injuries and automobile injuries. The authors conclude that establishing pilot projects, particularly through a voluntary or contractual approach, is likely the most practical way to realize the potential of this model for medical injuries.

"Administrative 'Health Courts' for Medical Injury Claims: The Federal Constitutional Issues" explores the potential of establishing a federal health court system in the United States that would transfer medical liability claims from traditional judge and jury trials in state courts to an administrative compensation system.  The authors discuss the legal challenges that might arise by moving to a federal health court system and conclude that with a properly drafted statute, the move to health courts would be constitutional, assuming there are demonstrated benefits with such an alternative system.

Recognizing work going on in individual states around patient safety and administrative compensation models, "Error Reporting and Injury Compensation: Advancing Patient Safety Through a State Patient Safety Organization" gives an overview of state-level initiatives to improve patient safety that rely on voluntary reporting of medical errors.

Common Good is also getting ready for a national forum on November 18, 2008 in Washington, D.C. The event will focus on the evolving health courts proposal and new patient safety-focused alternatives to the medical liability system. Visit Common Good's web site for more information and to RSVP for the event.