Whenever a physician’s conduct is being called into question, it is only fair that the physician, as a professional, be judged by an expert sharing the same background, training and experience. In medical liability cases, this means that only an expert practicing in the same specialty as the defendant physician should be permitted to testify about reasonableness of defendant physician’s care and treatment. Medicine is a complex and ever-changing discipline. Requiring a testifying expert to be from the same specialty helps ensure that the defendant physician’s conduct is being appropriately judged and can help prevent the filing of frivolous lawsuits. Legislation is needed to require that experts in medical liability cases be from the same specialty as the defendant physician.
✅ Strengthen expert witness standards
✅ Ensure that expert witness is from the same specialty as the defendant physician
✅ Prevent frivolous lawsuits
✅ Improve the practice environment for physicians in your state
State Advocacy
Workforce — Scope of Practice
Allowing practitioners to perform procedures they simply aren’t trained to do can only lead to unpredictable outcomes, higher costs and greater fragmentation of care. A physician's years of medical education and training are vital to the health care team and optimal...
Uniform Prior Authorization for Prescriptions and Health Services
In an effort to contain health care costs, most health insurers require a physician to obtain "prior authorization" before prescribing certain medications and health services. Most medical practices contract with multiple insurance companies, each with its own...
Prostate Cancer Awareness & Assessment
Prostate cancer is the second most common cause of cancer deaths in men, and about one man in six will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in his lifetime. Fortunately, the early detection of prostate cancer through appropriate testing has been shown to dramatically...
Fair Contracting and Medical Practice Freedom
As professionals, physicians should expect to be treated openly and fairly by those with whom they transact business. This includes being given sufficient notice of any changes an insurer seeks to make to its provider contracts, the opportunity to either accept or...