Over €32m paid out in claims against consultants

OVER €32 million was paid in claims against consultants last year, according to the Medical Defence Union’s annual report.

It is understood that cases involving actions against obstetricians accounted for the vast majority of awards.

The report for 2003 shows claims have risen by 300%, up from €11.9m in 2002 to €32.7m.

The MDU last night warned the sharp increase in claims will further delay protracted negotiations with the Department of Health over insurance cover for obstetricians. The MDU claims it cannot meet the estimated €130m historic liabilities of obstetricians because it did not collect enough money in subscriptions in the past.

The health insurer claims it only collected €25m in insurance premiums. As a result, consultants have been operating in a limbo with no guarantee of cover since February 1 this year.

While it is understood to have offered to pay the State around €60m to cover future claims against doctors relating to births before last February 1, the Department of Health believes the true figure could be several multiples of that figure.

Yesterday, MDU chief executive Michael Saunders claimed it looked “highly optimistic” that the matter could be resolved by the end of the year. “One of the reasons that progress is so slow is that the number of requirements and preconditions sought by the [department] grow at every meeting. This is making it harder to reach agreement.”

At the centre of the row is the introduction of a new enterprise liability scheme in February under which doctors and hospitals would be insured as a single entity through the State Claims Agency.

However, a spokesperson for the Department of Health denied it was responsible for the lack of progress in the talks.

The Irish Hospital Consultants Association has rowed in behind the department, claiming the Irish authorities were obliged to examine MDU’s accounts before it could reach any agreement with the insurer.

IHCA secretary general Finbarr Fitzpatrick accused the MDU of deliberately stalling the ongoing negotiations. He supported the department’s request to conduct due diligence on the insurer’s books. He said the IHCA had never expected the Health Minister “to write a blank cheque for the MDU”.