ED Physicians Attribute Many Test Orders to Fear of Lawsuits and the May Issue of the Washington Sentinel

[CAL/AAEM News Service]

May 26, 2011
ED physicians attribute many test orders to fear of lawsuits.
AMA Morning Rounds

The Huffington Post (5/25, Pearson) reported that 53 percent of respondents in a "survey of more than 1,700" emergency department physicians conducted by the American College of Emergency Physicians "said the main reason they conduct the number of tests they do is fear of lawsuits," and another "44 percent said that very fear was the biggest hindrance to cutting ED costs. ... 'We do a lot of these tests to cover ourselves that then give people an awful lot of radiation,'" said ACEP President Dr. Sandra Schneider. This week, ACEP led hundreds of ED physicians "to Capitol Hill to push for medical liability reform." In a press release, ACEP "emphasized the issue of CT scans, calling for doctors who stick to guidelines developed by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (which suggest limiting the number of head CT scans) in order to be protected against litigation."
 
 



May 2011
Washington Sentinel

Attached is the latest issue of AAEM's Washington Sentinel. The Sentinel is attached as a PDF file. 
 
In this issue . . .   
    
** GOP’s Medical Malpractice Bill Continues Progress Through House
** Debate on “Doc Fix” Continues
** No Surprise:  No Repeal of PPACA!  Surprise:  New Spirit of Compromise?
** Senate Hearing on ED Use, PPACA’s Effect, and GAO Report
** GAO Reports Community Health Centers Key to Reducing ED Use
** GAO Study of Drug Shortages Requested
** Shorts . . . 
** From the States . . .
 
 

 
Anna Parks &
Brian Potts MD, MBA
Managing Editors, CAL/AAEM News Service

 
 
Contact us at: calaaem.news.service1 at gmail.com

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Copyright (C) 2011. The California Chapter of the American Academy of Emergency Medicine (CAL/AAEM). All rights reserved.

CAL/AAEM, a nonprofit professional organization for emergency physicians, operates the CAL/AAEM News Service solely as an educational resource for physicians. Dissemination of an article by CAL/AAEM News Service does not imply endorsement, agreement, or recommendation by CAL/AAEM News Service, CAL/AAEM, or AAEM.
 
 
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