The March announcement that The Doctor's Company is cutting liability premiums for Texas physicians another 18 percent is just the latest evidence that Texas' 2003 health care liability reforms are delivering on their promise: stabilized insurance rates for physicians and increased patient access to care. Since Proposition 12 passed, the physician-owned carrier has slashed their rates 24.5%; that's deeper than any Texas carrier. This marks the twelfth rate reduction by a major Texas insurer since lawmakers passed landmark liability reforms almost two and a half years ago.

All five of the state's leading physician liability carriers have cut their rates in the past year-most by double-digits-- saving Texas doctors a projected $49 million in 2006, according to Dr. Howard Marcus, an Austin internist and chairman of the Texas Alliance For Patient Access.

"The recent spate of rate cuts seems to parallel an influx of high-risk and emergency care specialists," said Dr. Marcus."The physician growth rate is staggering and the turnaround is occurring throughout the state. We're anticipating a record 4,000 new Texas physicians will be licensed this year," said Dr. Marcus.

Since Proposition 12:

* Texas has added 81 obstetricians, following a net loss of 14 in the three years prior to reforms.

* A total of 93 new orthopedic surgeons are practicing in the state, after a net loss of 9 orthopedic surgeons over a four-year span.

* After years of stagnation, the state has added two dozen badly needed neurosurgeons, including one each in the medically underserved communities of Beaumont and Corpus Christi.

Dr. Marcus said that prior to reform, "the legal climate had gotten so bad that some doctors refused to take emergency calls and were restricting their scope of practice to avoid the risk of a lawsuit. Insurers had pulled out of the state and doctors were scrambling to find coverage at any price.
"Many areas of the state were having trouble keeping let alone attracting physicians, especially those serving in high-risk medicine," said Dr. Marcus. "It appears the exodus has ended. The entire state is in a growth mode."

The Brownsville/Harlingen area is experienced its greatest gain in physicians ever, while Beaumont, Corpus Christi and Victoria have posted impressive gains after experiencing a net loss of physicians in the 18 months prior to tort reform, Dr. Marcus said.

The state has also seen substantial gains in hard-to-recruit children's doctors such as pediatric cancer physicians, pediatric endocrinologists, child neurologists and doctors who specialize in newborns and premature infants.

Dr. Marcus noted the newly adopted medical liability reforms strike a balance between the medical needs of the many and the right to reasonable compensation for those harmed while receiving care. He cautioned the new reforms place no limit on damages for past and future medical bills, lost earnings or in-home assistance. It only affects the loss for subjective harm such as physical pain and emotional distress. That component had increased four-fold in the decade prior to the passage of the 2003 reforms.

In April, the American Medical Association removed Texas from its list of states in liability crisis. Texas is the only state ever to be removed from the list, said Dr. Marcus. "Clearly the recent reforms are benefiting both patients and doctors."