Gracey-Backer, Inc.

INSURANCE

FOUNDED 1925

 

 

MATT GRACEY, SR.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        275 GEORGE BUSH BLVD

BARBARA GRACEY BACKER, CIC                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              POST OFFICE BOX 2226

RONALD C. BACKER                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     DELRAY BEACH , FLORIDA 33447

DEBORAH VASHON, CPCU AAI                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             (561)276-6055 (800)272-6055

WENDY L. RING                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          FAX (561)265-0034

                                                                                                                                                                                                WWW.GRACEYBACKER.COM

                                                                                                                                                                                  INSURANCE@GRACEYBACKER.COM

“The Physician’s Gazette” --June 2004

Educational Bulletin for Florida Physicians and Surgeons

“Malpractice Issues Which Affect your Practice”

 

Road to a Constitutional Amendment Limiting Attorney Fees is Arduous

Florida doctors are working together to keep alive a ballot initiative to limit lawyers’ fees in malpractice cases.  For the proposed amendment to make the ballot:  Signatures of 48,869 voters must be gathered and verified.  The Florida Supreme Court must approve the ballot language.  Signatures of 488,722 voters must be gathered and verified for the amendment to be put on the ballot.  Needless to say, the trail attorneys are mounting a heavy offensive.  They have offered three of their own amendments.  One would give patients the right to review a doctor’s history of medical errors, another would prevent a doctor from being licensed in Florida after three o more malpractice incidents, and a third would make doctors charge the same price for the health-care service to each patient.  Tallahassee Democrat, 5/04

 

Provoked by Mounting Malpractice Suits, One Doctor Refuses Care for Trial Lawyers

 

Upset with what he calls the “agony and anguish” that frivolous malpractice lawsuits cause of his physician brethren, a physician in Columbus , Ohio notified about 50 medical malpractice attorneys that he would refuse to see them and their family members as patients.  The reason: He places much of the blame for Ohio ’s skyrocketing medical malpractice insurance premiums on frivolous lawsuits filed by lawyers whose “life work appears to be motivated by greed.”  Since his position became public, the doctor said he was received a hundreds of calls and letters of support from patients and physicians.  His mail has also included sharply worded rebukes from trials lawyers.  The physician and his partners are changing the way they practice medicine.  They no longer set broken bones or perform minor surgeries in the office.  They refer these cases to specialists.  They also got rid of their X-ray equipment because of liability issues.  Business First of Columbus , May 21, 20004.

 

More and More Med Students are Shunning Time-Demanding Specialties

 

Medical students are opting for specialties that not only fit their interest, but also their lifestyle.  They are seeking to balance their personal and professional lives.  No beepers, no weekend call.  When they leave work at the end of the day, they don’t want to be called back.  As a result, interest is growing in specialties like psychiatry and dermatology.  Hospital-based specialties such as emergency medicine, radiology and anesthesiology also offer stability.  Fewer students are choosing primary care, general surgery, and internal medicine and other professions associated with an uncontrollable lifestyle.  This trend could have serious ramifications for our country’s health care, according to the president of the American Medical Student Association.  Post Gazette, Tuesday, May 11, 2004.

 

Recent Placements

Client                                                                                                                                        Location                                                                                        Limits                                                                                                                           Premium

Internal Medicine                                                                                                                    Palm Beach County                                                                      $250,000/$750,000                                                                                                       $25,447

Family Practice                                                                                                                        Martin County                                                                               $500,000/$1,500,000                                                                                                    $29,615

Allergist                                                                                                                                    Broward County                                                                            $1,000,000/$3,000,000                                                                                                $23,976

 

Gracey-Backer at a Glance-June 2004:  The malpractice insurance market is easing slightly, with the entry of several new companies, including an “A” rated middle market carrier and two reciprocal insurance companies.  Legal Defense Insurance is popular.  Our focus this month is on helping Florida doctors get out of the FMMJUA into more reasonably priced carriers.  We are pleased that, because of our 20+ years of malpractice experience, we are successful in many cases.  Wendy L. Ring has been named Manager of the Medical Malpractice Insurance Department (10 years malpractice “in-the-trenches” experience and a fine example of excellence and integrity).