WHY DOES KENTUCKY NEED MEDICAL REVIEW PANEL LEGISLATION?

• Kentucky has one of the nation’s most litigation-friendly environments

• Medical review panels have proven effective in other states for decades. These panels have withstood numerous constitutional challenges in the State Supreme Courts of Indiana and Louisiana. These two states have identical, if not more restrictive, jural rights provisions in their State Constitutions as Kentucky.

WHAT MRPS DO:

• Establishes an independent panel of three medical experts to review claims against health care providers.
• Provides a timely, independent, medical opinion on the standard of care that is admissible in court.
• Provides another layer of accountability for Kentucky health care providers and personal injury lawyers.

WHAT MRPS DO NOT DO:

• Do NOT limit, delay, or deny a patient’s or their family’s access to court. Any claim can still proceed.
• Do NOT create additional costs for a patient or their family to sue a health care provider.
• Do NOT bind a jury from determining findings of fact and conclusions of law.

NEED AN EXAMPLE OF THE PROBLEM?

• Look no Further than Kentucky’s Long Term Care Industry. A 2012 study showed that Kentucky’s nursing homes face the worst litigation environment in the nation.
• While personal injury lawyers claim that lawsuits improve nursing home care, the highly respected New England Journal of Medicine found that lawsuits do nothing to improve nursing home care.
• The federal CMS Nursing Home Compare website clearly shows that Kentucky’s nursing facilities meet or exceed all federal guidelines with regard to staffing levels and care.
• The data being shared by the opponents to Medical Review Panels is based upon a rating system that has forced percentages and makes it is impossible for ANY state to have less than 40% of its nursing homes rated better than “below average,” regardless of the care.