Letter: Litigation costs hurt Bay State doctors, hospitals

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November 28, 2008

Anonymous The Salem News Fri Nov 28, 2008, 03:31 AM EST

To the editor:

Kudos for your Nov. 20 editorial on the devastating impact of rising malpractice insurance premiums and defensive medicine costs on the North Shore Birth Center and other medical facilities in Massachusetts

("Birth Center's problems highlight need for tort reform").

Defensive medicine is not just a problem in Massachusetts. Nationwide the cost of such unnecessary procedures exceeds $124 billion annually.

The Bay State's poor tort rules have allowed this medical crisis to fester. Massachusetts is classified as a "sinner state" in the Pacific Research Institute's 2008 U.S. Tort Liability Index, a study I co-authored, due to its high tort costs and outsized litigation risks.

State policymakers must enact common-sense, meaningful tort reforms if they hope to keep medical facilities open, physicians practicing, and health care affordable.

LAWRENCE J. MCQUILLAN, Ph.D.

Director, Business and Economic Studies

Pacific Research Institute

San Francisco, Calif.

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Opinion

Letter: Beverly should crack down on speeders

To the editor:
I live on Corning Street in Beverly and have a paper route. I have to cross the street to get to the houses.
Every time I try to cross, there is at least one car that goes speeding past me. I feel this is unsafe, and it is only a matter of time before someone gets hurt.

The Salem News Fri, June 01
Jun 1, 2012 4:30 am
Letter: Shipbuilding family's name lives on in Salem street name

To the editor:
Salem's Becket Street owes its name to an early Salem family of shipbuilders who received well-deserved acclaim for their work over a span of 150 years. At the foot of the street stood Becket's shipyard, where a number of Salem's finest ships were built.

The Salem News Fri, June 01
Jun 1, 2012 4:30 am
Letter: Contrary to editorial, Law of Sea Treaty poses threat to US

To the editor:
The Salem News is showing its liberal colors in its recent editorial endorsing the Law of the Sea Treaty (LOST).
The editors describe those who disagree with them as the "loony right" or those with "paranoid fantasies." You are insulting a lot of people, some of whom are your readers. I guess you don't adhere to responsible arguments and diversity of ideas.

The Salem News Fri, June 01
Jun 1, 2012 4:30 am
Our view: Bans on drug discounts, doctors' meals should be repealed

Could Massachusetts be shedding its nanny-state image?
Currently, it's the only one of the 50 states that bans the use of coupons for the purchase of prescription medications. Legislators apparently felt their constituents might be too easily swayed by these offers and might go on drug-buying binges aided by their doctors who must write the prescriptions.

The Salem News Thu, May 31
May 31, 2012 5:00 am
Our view: Trailblazing local preservationist wins statewide honor

We suspect few are more anxious to see the Friendship back at her berth at the Salem Maritime National Historic Site than Annie Harris.
As director of The Salem Partnership, she was instrumental in getting the replica of a 1797 East Indiaman built to enhance the visitor experience at the National Park Service-administered site and serve as a symbol of the ties that bind the communities of Essex County. Those efforts eventually led to her appointment as the first director of the Essex National Heritage Commission in 1997, a post she holds to this day.

The Salem News Thu, May 31
May 31, 2012 5:00 am
My View: College: Is it worth it? May 31, 2012 4:45 am
Barbara Anderson: Home's value determined by what tax assessors say it's worth May 31, 2012 4:45 am
Letter: Beloved bookstore's closing a loss for the community May 31, 2012 4:30 am
Letter: Salem cemetery open to some, not others May 31, 2012 4:30 am
Our View: Big test for upstart Senate candidate May 30, 2012 5:00 am
Our View: Time to get rid of Salem council's silly gag rule May 30, 2012 5:00 am
Reg Henry: Dear Friends: Facebook is, like, so lame May 30, 2012 4:45 am
What Others Say: Nanny state alive and well in the Merrimack Valley May 30, 2012 4:45 am
Letter: Great day for Farms community May 30, 2012 4:30 am
Letter: Proposed development threatens another Beverly neighborhood May 30, 2012 4:30 am
Letter: Excessive parking rules threaten Salem's small businesses May 30, 2012 4:30 am
Letter: Goal should be reasonable ambulance rates for all May 30, 2012 4:30 am
Our View: Sports stardom no guarantee of future success May 29, 2012 5:05 am 1 Photo
Our View: For better or worse, this trio helped define our culture May 29, 2012 5:00 am
Letter: Project should provide ownership option for working class May 29, 2012 4:30 am
Letter: St. Mary's: Lifebridge should mend things by finding new home for grotto icons May 29, 2012 4:30 am
Letter: St. Joseph's Church: a legacy for future generations in Salem? May 29, 2012 4:30 am
Our View: A day to honor our military heroes May 28, 2012 5:01 am 1 Photo
Our View: Tourney time a spring treat May 28, 2012 4:59 am
Thanks: Chief made a good impression on her class May 28, 2012 4:55 am 1 Photo
Thanks: Auction raised money for Ipswich Rotary's good works May 28, 2012 4:55 am
Ann McFeatters: It's all about the economy May 28, 2012 4:55 am
Thanks: Many helped honor Marblehead physician May 28, 2012 4:55 am
Thanks: Change in Salem Hall of Fame something to celebrate May 28, 2012 4:47 am
Our View: Transient staff evidence of NOAA's dysfunction May 26, 2012 4:41 am

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