[darkerside]

> Damb right. Take away a patient's right to hold doctors accountable and things go south very quickly, at least in a for-profit systems. The study cited in the article would seem to rebut that quite vigorously.

FTA: > They found that the possibility of a lawsuit increased the intensity of health care that patients received in the hospital by about 5 percent — and that those patients who got the extra care were no better off.

[mywittyname]

An side of this that most people aren't aware of is that insurance companies will refuse to pay for any medical test they deem to be unnecessary. So, while a doctor may order additional tests to "CYA," it's pretty likely that the hospital won't be reimbursed for all of them and will just eat the cost of the tests. And, while a hospital may charge thousands for a test, the actual costs might only be in the hundreds. Depending on the hospital system, this can be a win-win because the tax write-off can be worth more than the actual test costs.

The healthcare system in the US is insane.

[ryandrake]

> So, while a doctor may order additional tests to "CYA," it's pretty likely that the hospital won't be reimbursed for all of them and will just eat the cost of the tests.

What? In the USA, it’s the customer who eats the cost of the test. 1. The doctor tells you to go do all these tests. 2. Neither the doctor, the testing lab, the hospital, or the insurance company knows which ones will be covered by insurance. 3. You do the tests. 4. Insurance company, months later, says “Surprise, sucker! We won’t cover these tests so you have to pay $N,000!” 5. The lab and doctor says “You signed the paper agreeing to cover the costs. F-you Pay me.”

[FireBeyond]

Yeah, not so much. I had a bunch of tests run at the suggestion of my Provider when I turned 40. Insurer decided not all were needed in the first place. So Provider's lab (in house, attached to a hospital) just sent me a bill for $780 instead, for the balance.

[sandworm101]

Because the test only measured changes in the decisions by doctors. The doctors all work within the same medical culture, one built on the threat of lawsuits. Try telling an insurance company that they cannot be sued. See how many fewer tests get authorized when the actuaries can veto a doctor's recommendation without incurring liability.