Malpractice Defendants Already Have Special Legal Protections In Georgia

Georgia law already has some of the strongest legal protections just for doctors and hospitals.

In Georgia, a victim of malpractice must have another doctor swear under oath that the physician or hospital committed malpractice before he or she can file a lawsuit for medical malpractice.[71]

In a medical malpractice trial, the jury is told from the beginning of their deliberations to presume that the doctor provided appropriate care.[72]

If the jury makes a questionable decision in favor of a victim of malpractice, the judge can reduce the verdict or even order a new trial for the doctor or the hospital.[73]

Even if the jury returns what the defense perceives is a “runaway verdict” for an injured patient, the insurance company for the doctor or hospital virtually always settles the case for an amount that is already covered by the doctor’s or hospital’s insurance policy limits.

In reality, jurors are extremely sympathetic to physicians and unlikely to award damages to an injured person:

In cases MAG has taken to trial since 1982, the defendant healthcare provider has won in 82% of the cases – even though the jury hears expert physician testimony establishing that the doctor committed negligence that caused the plaintiff’s injuries.[74]

In 2001, MAG Mutual made NO indemnity payment in 83% of the claims it closed.

In 2001, MAG won 81 percent of the cases it took to trial.[75]

Why should doctors and hospitals be held any less accountable for the harm they cause than the rest of us?

Additional tort restrictions on the legal rights of patients would only punish those Georgians who have been injured by medical errors and need help to recover and would not provide physicians or hospitals relief from rising premiums.