Focus on safety, not lawsuits

Re: Michael Hiltzik’s business column “Why tort reform is a frivolous diversion,” Oct. 1:

Preventable medical errors kill nearly 100,000 people a year. Precious few injured patients ever file a lawsuit or recover a dime for their injuries.

If the goal is fewer lawsuits, it should be achieved by increasing the quality of medicine practiced in this country.

Unfortunately, doctors and hospitals generally resist changes that have been proven to make medical care safer, preferring to demonize lawyers.

Linda Fermoyle Rice

Woodland Hills

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Hiltzik’s column fails to mention that the cost of medical malpractice insurance in states without something like MICRA, California’s long-standing protection against runaway rates, is double and triple what it is in our state.

Instead of steering money toward personal injury lawyers, we should focus our attention on improving the quality of care and preventing medical errors.

Dev GnanaDev

Colton