Texas On Par For Emergency Medical Care

In their survey on the "state of emergency medicine" among the states, the American College of Emergency Physicians this week rated Texas as decently mediocre. Coming in at a paltry #21, we were nevertheless praised for our "the paragon for medical liability reform," which the Austin Business Journal attributes to our quarter-million dollar cap on noneconomic damages in liability awards and settlements for individual physicians, approved via last year's successful Prop 12.

But while medical liability lawsuits have decreased by as much as 80% since 2003, Texas remains in dead last in percentage of uninsured citizens (From ABJ):

"Because Texas has the largest number of uninsured citizens of any state, we have a huge problem with uncompensated care provided in emergency departments and trauma centers," says the chairwoman of the report card task force, Plano emergency physician Dr. Angela Gardner.

Top ranked states included California, Massachusetts, Connecticut and the District of Columbia, while the lowest were Arkansas, Idaho and Utah.