If lawyers were not allowed to take cases on speculation, there would be a lot less cases and a lot less litigiation. Some US areas have no doctors in some specialities because of the cost of malpractice insurance. A lot of countries require the plaintiff to put up a retainer fee before suing someone. Wouldn't that get rid of a lot of frivolous lawsuits and reduce health care costs?
Yes, that is correct, a retainer is a "down payment" to the attorney, often 1/4 to 1/3 of what the expected final fee might be.
wizjp
No. It's "A" problem.
Not "The" problem.
There are a lot of problems.
Bob G
It is one of the biggest problems with health care costs. Between the greed and the insurance against such greed, we have a huge problem that is not being addressed by the government. They make themselves lawsuit proof but leave everybody else out to hang. I suspect it is on purpose because it will help eliminate competition.
There are other problems but that is a big one.
John M
I believe it plays a very large role, but it's not the only cause. Desire for profit, a poorly monitored Medicare/Medicaid system, etc., also play a part. A "retainer" is a down payment you give an attorney to represent you, I thought. Do you mean a filing fee? Controlling the attorneys is a tough one ... a lot of legislators are attorneys. Or they OWE attorneys big time for troubles they've gotten them (the legislators) out of. You're on the right track, but how do we get it solved.
Louie
It's one of the problems, as mentioned above, but not "the" problem. Another problem is people without insurance. Part of what drives up health care costs is indeed the expense incurred by doctors/hospitals in medical malpractice litigation. But another part is the fact that, when people without insurance show up at the emergency room and receive treatment, they generally can't afford to pay the bills for their care. But the hospital has to recoup that cost somehow, so they do it by passing those costs on to people with insurance--i.e., by raising the cost of health care services. So if a procedure would normally "cost" the hospital $ 1000 to perform, but 15% of the people that come in can't afford to pay the $ 1000, the hospital might hike the price up to, say, $ 1200, so that people who CAN pay end up covering the costs of people who can't.
Orignal From: Isn't litigation the real problem with health care costs?
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