A Flood of Litigation?: Predicting the Consequences of Changing Legal Remedies Available to ERISA Beneficiaries

Antiretroviral Therapy in Patients with Dual Infection with Human Immunodeficiency Virus Types 1 and 2

“…My colleagues and I found that only 25 percent of infections with the latter viruses among hospitalized children who were younger than five years of age were identified by culture or antigen detection, as compared with 63 percent of respiratory syncytial virus infections. 5 The remainder of infections were detected by increases in antibody titers only in serum specimens obtained from patients during convalescence.…”

“…A close look at the studies Frankford and colleagues cite shows that there is no "rigorous evidence" to answer these questions. 5 We simply do not know. But as skilled attorneys set their sights on managed-care organizations, fresh from billion-dollar successes in asbestos and tobacco litigation, there are reasons for concern.…”

“…State plans have never enjoyed immunity from suit under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, yet litigation against them has had a rather de minimis effect, 4 a result expected, given the documented rarity of actual claims for injury. 5 Similarly, a nationwide comparison of public and private employer premiums showed that the threat of liability had no effect. 6 Greater efforts are needed to reduce errors, but these cannot substitute for a fair and just means of compensating injured patients and creating incentives for reasonable policy.…”

“…4 Some rabbinic authorities uphold a distinction between artificial nutrition and medical treatment, whereas others acknowledge that "the expected clinical benefit from [artificial] feeding must outweigh the significant risks and suffering caused to the patient, otherwise it should not be done." 5 We must accept that artificial nutrition and hydration are incapable of sustaining the life of patients with advanced dementia who have difficulty eating or swallowing. Introduction of feeding tubes, which are not only ineffective but also often burdensome, makes little sense.…”

Expanded Managed Care Liability: What Impact On Employer Coverage?

“…30 Of course, uncertainty itself can destabilize insurance markets and therefore add to the cost of liability coverage. Nonetheless, passive responses to heightened liabilityhealth plans absorbing or insuring against claims and employers reducing coverage rather than paying increased premiums-will probably prove less significant to the evolution of the system than active changes in the roles and responsibilities of these key industry participants.…”