Law Offices of Richard S. Binko

President of the New York State Trial Lawyers Association Richard Binko published atricle on Medical Malpractice.

First published: Wednesday, September 9, 2009
John Faso makes a number of provocative points in his commentary, "Health reform begins here," Aug. 31. However, he does not discuss the overlooked issue of patient safety. 
In a landmark study, the national Institute of Medicine found that up to 98,000 Americans die each year because of preventable medical errors. In addition to costing lives, these mistakes -- and others that do not result in death -- cause billions of dollars of unnecessary medical expenses. This is the true malpractice crisis. 
Faso's suggestion that the civil justice system needs reform risks making our health care system more dangerous. A strong civil justice system protects patients from malpractice and encourages doctors and other providers to do everything they can to avoid preventable errors. 
We beg to differ with Mr. Faso that we have a problem with doctors fleeing our state. In fact, while the state's population has increased by 6 percent since 1995, the number of physicians has risen 20 percent. The real problem is not too few doctors -- it's too many medical errors and not enough emphasis on patient safety. 
Richard Binko 
President 
New York State Trial Lawyers Association