President Obama is asking the Justice Department for $250 million in grants to help states write and implement new medical malpractice laws to help lower healthcare costs.
One reform proposal involves creating a legal defense for providers that follow guidelines for best practices when using electronic medical records. Other reforms include requiring providers to disclose medical mistakes early on and offer to provide compensation. Such programs have been shown to reduce litigation, according to the Associated Press.
The reforms Obama calls for are in line with those proposed by his bipartisan debt reduction commission, which issued its recommendations at the end of 2010. These proposals so far have earned a cool reaction from trial lawyers and Congressional Republicans.
