Some More Frank Talk on Health Courts

We're wrapping up our breakdown of special health courts today. Thanks go out to Common Good for balanced thought on this. For past entries in this series, go here.

Will parties still be able to appeal decisions made by a health court?

Yes, parties will still be able to appeal decisions under the health court system. Review board decisions will be appealed to health courts, and health court decisions will be appealed to federal health court appellate bodies.

How will we ensure health courts remain independent and free from political influence?

Any dispute resolution can be susceptible to political influence, but proper design will ensure that health courts remain independent. For example, bipartisan committees can appoint health court review board members and judges. Appointment, rather than election, the method by which many state trial court judges are currently selected, and longer tenure for health court judges can also help insulate them from politics.

Who supports the health courts concept?

A wide variety of organizations, leaders, and publications have endorsed the health court concept, including several state medical societies, provider organizations, consumer groups, business groups, think tanks, and legislators in Congress and at the state level. Support for health courts is bipartisan. Both the Democratic Leadership Committee and the Senate Republican Policy Committee have endorsed the concept. For a list of individual endorsements, click here. For a list of organizational and media endorsements, click here. To see the results of our national poll on health courts, click here.

At the federal level, there are bills in both the U.S. Senate and the House to create pilot health court projects. Health courts bills have been introduced in several states by state legislators on both sides of the political aisle. For a more information on recent legislative activity, click here.

Comments

[Matt]

"How will we ensure health courts remain independent and free from political influence?

Any dispute resolution can be susceptible to political influence, but proper design will ensure that health courts remain independent. For example, bipartisan committees can appoint health court review board members and judges. Appointment, rather than election, the method by which many state trial court judges are currently selected, and longer tenure for health court judges can also help insulate them from politics."

Lobbyistspeak. They'll remain independent because we promise they will be. Because, after all, we're a lobbying organization and our job is to fight for independence, not our client.

The only way to have a dispute resolution process remain free from politics is to remove the financial incentive from the trier of fact. And no system does that better than the jury system.