The lead story today in the Evansville Courier&Press series on medical malpractice is titled "You can't get over it." A quote:
[W]hen the malpractice complaint was settled she was required to sign a confidentiality agreement, pledging not to talk about the doctor and hospital or the money that was paid.A related story today is titled "Malpractice claims nationwide are declining." Posted by Marcia Oddi at April 21, 2004 06:13 AMIt's one reason the public seldom hears about most malpractice cases. Confidentiality agreements are a standard requirement in the settlements, attorneys said.
"That's something the health-care providers and insurance companies insist on," explained Deborah Pennington, an Indianapolis attorney who has represented injured patients across the state. She said the agreements are, in effect, "a gag order."
Actually, all the details - except for the amount of money paid in negotiated settlements - are a matter of public record available from the Indiana Department of Insurance. But the department doesn't reveal the records unless someone asks for them. And its periodic public reports on the state Patient's Compensation Fund does not reveal the identities of any health-care provider involved in settlements paid by the fund, although the identities are public record by law.
When asked why the identities aren't reported, Amy Strati, general counsel for the department, said, "My guess is because knowing the health-care provider's name is not important to us for data analysis."
But people who've won malpractice claims said one reason the victory seems meaningless is because it doesn't help protect other people from being injured the way they were.