Though some Floridians might think the state Legislature made bold malpractice reforms during its special session in July, Dr. Alden Cockburn, a Tampa urologist, disagrees.
Cockburn, who has practiced in Tampa for 19 years, closed his practice at the end of December and is relocating to New Mexico. His personal tipping point? An expected 7 percent increase in his medical malpractice insurance this year and no end to increases in sight.
"All that's been enacted by the legislature is a $500,000 cap on awards, and that has no impact on premiums," said Cockburn, who would have been paying more than $80,000 for malpractice coverage this year had he stayed in Florida. "There's nothing to push rates down. All the pressure is upwards."
Cockburn said he's received a quote for malpractice coverage in New Mexico that is one-third the Florida premium. Plus he's being offered an incentive by a Taos hospital to open a private practice there.
Cockburn's departure left the Hillsborough County Medical Association in a bit of a lurch. The doctor had been slated to be its president, starting in May. Dr. Frank Mastandrea, also a urologist, has been drafted instead. And Cockburn doesn't think his Tampa colleagues stand much chance of getting malpractice relief.
"There's no hope for Florida changing its system for the next eight to 10 years," he said. "The political will is not there."
