New Jersey Hospitals Brace for Doctors’ Work Slowdown

Hospitals across New Jersey brought in extra workers and canceled elective surgeries to prepare for an unprecedented work slowdown expected today from thousands of doctors protesting the cost of malpractice insurance.

Physicians across the state planned to withhold nonemergency services and attend protests during the slowdown, but it was not clear how many of New Jersey’s 22,000 doctors would take part.

Some doctors have vowed to stay off the job at least a week, or until Gov. James E. McGreevey and Democratic lawmakers agree to legal reforms that doctors argue would rein in six-figure malpractice premiums.

“There are some doctors who have said point-blank that they’re not going back until this is resolved,” Dr. Robert S. Rigolosi, president of the Medical Society of New Jersey, said Friday.

Hospitals and doctors said emergency and urgent patient care would continue.

“We have doubled our ER staff” during the job action, said Dr. Joe Reichman, vice president of medical affairs for Virtua West Jersey’s four hospitals. “About 95% of elective surgeries are canceled.”

Other hospitals took similar steps, and many doctors’ offices posted notices about the situation.

Today’s action, organized by a grass-roots group of doctors, was backed by physicians’ professional societies and many hospitals.

Doctors say premiums rising above $200,000 for some specialists threaten access to patient care by forcing many doctors to retire early, move to states where premiums are lower or give up procedures that draw the most lawsuits, such as delivering babies.

Malpractice insurance premiums have recently prompted doctors in Florida, Mississippi and West Virginia to temporarily withhold services and have led to protests in other states.

Insurance companies blame rising premiums on excessive jury awards and meritless lawsuits, but lawyers blame them on insurer mismanagement. Many experts say doctors are increasingly squeezed because contracts with health maintenance organizations and Medicare prevent them from raising rates.

New Jersey doctors scheduled rallies and other events around the state today, followed by a Statehouse rally Tuesday and lobbying Wednesday. Consumer groups planned a Statehouse news conference today to argue against doctors’ demand for limits on malpractice awards.

On Friday, medical society officials delivered about 16,000 patient petitions to McGreevey’s office in which they demanded that politicians help doctors.

The doctors’ demand for a $250,000 cap on pain-and-suffering damages has snarled yearlong talks with politicians. McGreevey and key Democrats oppose it; doctors insist caps have held down premiums in California and 23 other states.

Democrats, patient advocates, and consumer and attorney groups argue such caps are unfair to malpractice victims.