Doctors rally for medical malpractice cap

A few hundred doctors rallied in the rain on the statehouse steps, urging lawmakers to limit awards in medical malpractice cases. American Medical Association president-elect John Nelson says there’s a looming crisis in health care.Nelson asked legislators to “please listen” to proposals to fix the problem. He and the other docs support a bill which would limit the amount of “pain and suffering” damages in a medical malpractice case to 250-thousand dollars. Nelson says patient care will suffer as doctors drop specialties, leave the state or retire because of the skyrocketing costs of malpractice insurance. Iowa Medical Society president Tom Evans hears from Iowa doctors who are finding it difficult to afford that insurance.Evans says Iowa physicians are seeing up to 270 percent increases in their premiums, and some companies won’t insure ’em at all. Critics say it’s unfair to limit damages to victims of medical errors. The doctors say they’re all in favor of covering economic losses, like lost income, but juries have been granting outrageous “pain and suffering” awards.