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Those We’ve Lost As a Result of Pennsylvania’s Medical Liability Crisis
Pennsylvania’s Disappearing Doctors and Services and Care Pennsylvania’s Hospitals Can No Longer Afford To Provide
by Donna Baver Rovito
This March 8, 2004 update of “Pennsylvania’s Disappearing Doctors” is admittedly incomplete, as it contains only listings of those physicians of whom we are aware, and it is likely that hundreds more have relocated or retired quietly, without reporting their departure and without canceling their PA medical licenses.
The State Federation of Medical Boards reports that Pennsylvania lost 1,071 “actively practicing” physicians from 2001 to 2002. Many of the names on this list are included in this figure, but many have been added since those numbers were compiled, and reductions in the status of medical licenses do not reflect physicians who have been forced to curtail services.
That noted, this list contains references to: 941 physicians who have relocated to other states; 176 who have retired earlier than they had planned; 228 who were either laid off, forced to close their practice, gave up the practice of medicine, left private practice medicine, or passed away with no hope of replacement; and 393 who have been forced to significantly alter their practice of medicine or curtail services like eliminating obstetrics or surgery, all as a result of the burgeoning medical liability crisis in Pennsylvania.
More importantly, each of these 1,738 listings represents hundreds or even thousands of patients who no longer have access to the training and skills of that physician.
The most recent physician losses will not be reflected in medical licensure figures for several years, and changes and limitations in practice will never be reflected by any quantitative measure.
This list also contains references to 2,524 health services jobs eliminated or lost due to hospitals’ skyrocketing malpractice premiums as reported in various press accounts throughout the state. Job losses not reported to the press will not be reflected here.
Those We’ve Lost As a Result of Pennsylvania’s Medical Liability Crisis Pennsylvania’s Disappearing Doctors and Services and Care Pennsylvania’s Hospitals Can No Longer Afford To Provide
by Donna Baver Rovito, Legislation Committee, Pennsylvania Medical Society Alliance
The Pennsylvania State Medical Board reported to the Pennsylvania Medical Society that 4,565 physicians with PA licenses requested that their licenses be placed on "inactive" status in the most recent renewal cycle in 2003; of those, 583 have current PA addresses, which means that almost 4,000 DO NOT. The State Federation of Medical Boards reports that Pennsylvania lost 1,071 actively practicing physicians from 2001 to 2002, while neighboring states showed increases. A nationwide survey of medical and surgical residents asked this question: If you were to begin your education again, would you study medicine or would you select another field? The answer: 76% of residents say they would choose medicine, down from 95% in 2001. Less than 25% of residents and fellows studying in Pennsylvania report that they will practice in our state. Half of Pennsylvania's physicians are over the age of 50, while we've dropped to 41st in the nation for the number of practicing physicians under the age of 35. There are only three orthopedic surgeons in the state under the age of 35. Pennsylvania is identified by the AMA as one of 19 states where the malpractice litigation climate has reached “crisis proportions.” The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) identifies Pennsylvania as one of nine “Red Alert Hot States,” where care is most at risk due to the medical liability insurance crisis.
Last fall, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released a report: “Confronting the New Health Care Crisis: Improving Health Care Quality and Lowering Costs by Fixing Our Medical Liability System.” The U.S. Congress House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health launched a series of hearings entitled: “Harming Patient Access to Care: The Impact of Excessive Litigation.” A November 2001 “Report of the PA House Professional Licensure Committee on the Shortage of Health Care Professionals” identifies the loss of physicians and other health care professionals as a major health care problem. The recently released independent PEW study attributes higher liability premiums in Pennsylvania to wildly increasing payouts and the number of frivolous suits filed, which cost the system countless millions for defense.
Opponents of medical liability reform quote outdated statistics, including bulk licensure figures, to deny the loss of sharply increasing numbers of Pennsylvania’s physicians. Physicians who have fled Pennsylvania in the past 6-12 months simply won’t show up in those numbers yet. Medical licenses are good for two years, and most physicians don't cancel them - if anything, they place them on "inactive" status. Many physicians maintain multiple licenses; many retired physicians maintain licensure in order to write prescriptions for family members. It is also important to note that every resident must have a PA license while training here, but cannot be reasonably counted as providing experienced patient care. PA's physician “brain drain” is primarily among subspecialists who are among the lowest number of physicians in a given area. For example, a rural community might have six obstetrician/gynecologists among 100 doctors. However, a loss of only half of the practicing obstetricians, while only a small percentage (3%) of the total number of physicians in the area, can cripple the delivery of vital health care services in that community - see Fayette County. Pennsylvania is fortunate to have over 30,000 physicians (many of whom are in training.) But only about 1,800 of these are Ob/Gyn specialists, about 1,200 are ER specialists, about 1,100 are orthopedic surgeons and less than 200 are neurosurgeons. As the subspecialties most affected by soaring malpractice premiums require the longest training, they are the most difficult to replace. The crisis has begun to reach into the ranks of internal medicine and family practitioners as well, as insurers seek additional premium increases to offset their losses.
In addition to a staggering loss of physicians, Pennsylvania’s world-class hospitals have been adversely affected by sharp increases in malpractice premiums: units and clinics have closed, residency programs have been lost and thousands of employees have been laid off in hospitals throughout the state. Many cutbacks cannot be quantified, but will eventually impact negatively on patient care. For example, a serious shortage of radiologists specializing in reading mammograms has increased the wait time for screening mammograms at most major hospitals to four to five months. As the breast cancer “cure rate” is directly related to early diagnosis, a several months’ wait for a mammogram could make the difference between survival and death for a woman with a particularly virulent strain of breast cancer. Maternity wards have closed. Obstetricians have been forced to curtail delivering babies. Trauma centers have been forced to divert patients because the doctors they are required to have on call have no insurance.
The following list features names, specialties, and other information about many excellent Pennsylvania doctors, a large number of whom aren’t Pennsylvania doctors anymore. Many have left the state or retired early. Others have limited their practices or left private practice to reduce their liability expenses. They’re not statistics. They’re talented and dedicated people who have provided a valuable and irreplaceable service to Pennsylvania's patients. One suburban hospital reports that it has had not a single application for new privileges in two years. Not only are physicians leaving, but we can’t replace them, because young doctors have gotten the word the Pennsylvania is a really bad place to practice medicine. Despite the passage of several measures in 2002, liability premiums continue to rise as fewer carriers offer liability coverage. Liability payouts and legal expenses exceed premium collections by about $1.30 on each dollar. Almost 60% of what insurers pay out goes not to injured patients, but to lawyers’ fees and administrative costs. Until an atmosphere of profitability entices new insurers into our marketplace, premiums will not fall. The solution is many-pronged: fewer unfounded (or frivolous) cases must be filed; non-economic damage awards to genuinely injured patients must have reasonable limits, while further ensuring that the majority of those settlements benefit the victim, not just the attorney; all Pennsylvania physicians must have relief from surcharges into the MCARE Fund, and Pennsylvania’s mandated $1 million insurance coverage must be either eliminated or reduced.
This list is most definitely not a complete representation of doctors and services we’ve lost. There is, unfortunately, no central location to which departing or retiring doctors must report or to which hospitals must report cutbacks. For example, we've had little information from Erie County, but recently, a list of 85 physicians' names was forwarded to me, and some of the departures were as long ago as 2001. The physician loss in Erie County was real enough - we just didn't have the details about it. Pennsylvania's Disappearing Doctors list was culled from newspaper articles and e-mail requests for information sent to health care professionals throughout the state. Information has not been independently verified; we have relied on the accuracy and honesty of health care professionals reporting loss of access and services in their own geographic areas. What this list attempts to do is to put some names to otherwise nameless claims that Pennsylvania is losing some of its finest physicians. It is also a loosely connected series of examples of a downward trend affecting Pennsylvania’s hospitals as they attempt to provide quality care in an atmosphere of reduced reimbursements, soaring liability premiums, and loss of their physician staff members. Here are just some of the doctors and hospital services we've lost, listed by counties for which we were able to locate information (56 of 67 counties). This is a small sampling which I believe to be the tip of the proverbial iceberg. There was no available information for unlisted counties but that doesn’t mean they haven’t lost doctors or services; it simply means they haven’t responded to requests for information.
(March 8, 2004 Update)
ADAMS COUNTY: Physician Effect: • General Surgeon Dr. Corenzo, Gettysburg Hospital, retired early in 2003 due to the unfovorable medical economic climate
ALLEGHENY COUNTY: Physician Effect: • Urologist Paul Arnold, Mckeesport, relocated to Florida in 2003 after practicing in Pennsylvania for only two years, leaving his associate, a urologist in his 60's, alone again • General Surgeon George Benz, Forbes Hospital, retired early • Urologist Thomas Benz, Allegheny General Hospital, relocated to Delaware in November 2002 • Ob/Gyn Sarah Berga, Magee Women's Hospital, left Pennsylvania in 2003 • Nephrologist Aravind Boinapally will relocate to New Orleans, Louisiana in April 2004 • Respiratory Disease Specialist Jenee Bowman, Allegheny General Hospital, relocated to North Carolina in August 2002 • Anna Cahall, DMD, Allegheny General Hospital, relocated to Ohio in August 2002 • Family Practitioner Sandra Cromo stopped practicing medicine in 2003 • Opthalmologist Glenn Cockerham, Allegheny General Hospital, relocated to California in 2004 • Opthalmologist Kimberly Cockerham, Allegheny General Hospital, relocated to California in 2004 • Pathologist David Dabbs, Allegheny General Hospital, relocated to Maryland in 2000 • General Surgeon Christopher Daly, St. Francis Hospital, gave up clinical practice for an administrative position • Radiologist Ziad Deeb, Allegheny General Hospital, relocated to Florida in February 2002 • Neurosurgeon John Day, Allegheny General Hospital, relocated to Denver, Colorado due to malpractice premiums and low reimbursements in January, 2004 • Rheumatologist Rajul Desai, Allegheny General Hospital, relocated to Maryland in May 2003 • ER Specialist Liz Eaton will relocate to Dayton, Ohio early in 2004 • Ob/Gyn Dennis English, Magee-Women’s Hospital, stopped delivering babies at the end of November, 2002 after 22 years and 2,500 babies • Trauma Surgeon Mark Falimirski, Allegheny General Hospital, relocated to Wisconsin in April 2001 • Neurosurgeon Marc Flitter, Allegheny General Hospital, relocated to New Mexico in June, 2001 • Opthalmologist Gary Foulks, UPMC Presbyterian Hospital, relocated to Kentucky in 2004 • Dr. Elaine Freeman, Manchester, is retiring prematurely solely due to insurance costs in 2003 • ENT Surgeon Stephen Froman has stopped doing facial trauma and high-risk endoscopic sinus surgery • Orthopedic Surgeon Lou Glasso and two surgical associates are retiring from medicine in 2003 • Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Specialist Ron Glick, UPMC, left PA in 2003 • Cardiovascular Disease Specialist Joseph Hakas relocated to North Carolina • General Surgeon Charles Hauessner, St. Margaret’s Hospital, UPMC, retired early due to a doubling of liability premiums that would have forced him to work 60-80 hours a week to cover his liability premium, at a time in his life when he wanted to continue working, but work fewer hours • General/Vascular Surgeon Andrea Hendrzak, Mercy Hospital, age 32, left her Pittsburgh practice October 1, 2003 due to the increased burdens of malpractice costs and because she felt her group "worked too hard." She will work locum tenens outside of Pennsylvania until an opportunity to become an employed physician presents itself • Trauma Surgeon Mike Hughes, Allegheny General Hospital, is moving to North Carolina in 2003 • Radiologist Christopher Johns, UPMC, moved to Winter Park, FL • Cardiologist Lawrence Kam, Allegheny General Hospital, relocated to Washington, DC in January 2002 • Occupational Medicine Specialist Elizabeth Kann, Allegheny General Hospital, relocated to Ohio in July 2002 • Endocrinologist Steven Kaufman, Allegheny General Hospital, relocated to New Jersey in November 2001 • General Surgeon Tim Kavic, UPMC Passavant, relocated to Minnesota in 2004 • Neuroradiologist Susan Siren Kemp, Pittsburgh Area Health Systems, closed practice in June 2003 and relocated to Ohio • Neurosurgeon William Kemp, Pittsburgh Area Health Systems, closed practice in June 2003 and relocated to Ohio • Pediatrician Christopher Kim, Allegheny General Hospital, relocated out of PA in September 2002 • Neurosurgeon Joseph King, UPMC Presbyterian, relocated to Connecticut on July 1, 2003 • General Surgeon Joseph Kolter, Pittsburgh, retired in the prime of his career in December 2001 • Gastroenterologist Ramex Koury, Allegheny General Hospital, relocated to Wisconsin in May 2002 • ENT Helen Krause retired in March, 2003, after have previously given up surgery during the fall of 2002 • Orthopedic Surgeon Norman Krause relocated to New York • Endocrinologist Esther Krug, Allegheny General Hospital, relocated to Maryland in July 2002 • Perinatologist Dan Landers, Magee Women's Hospital, relocated to Minnesota in 2003 • Cardiothoracis Surgeon John Liddicoat, Allegheny General Hospital, relocated out of PA in August 2001 • ER Specialist Jean Lucid, Allegheny General Hospital, relocated to Texas in December 2001 • Ob/Gyn Gracie Lyons, Western Pennsylvania Hospital, left Pennsylvania in 2003 • Vascular and General Surgeon Warren Maley, Allegheny General Hospital, relocated to Louisiana in 2003 • Dr. Robert Mantica, Swickley Valley and Mercy Hospitals, moved to New York in 2003 • Neurosurgeon Don Marion, UPMC Presbyterian, relocated to Boston in 2003 • ENT Duane Martin left Pittsburgh in March 2002 • Internist Rosalind Martz, Allegheny General Hospital, relocated to Texas in June 2001 • General Surgeon Michael McCafferty relocated to Kentucky • Orthopedic Surgeon John McCarthy III, Natrona Heights, relocated to Virginia on Sept. 1, 2003; he comes from a long line of physicians and takes with him three children, several of whom might have become PA physicians • ENT Jonathan McGinn, Allegheny General Hospital, relocated out of PA in June 2003 • Ob/Gyn Elizabeth McPherson, Allegheny General Hospital, relocated to Wisconsin in January 2003 • Radiologist John Mikita retired at the age of 57 in 2003 • Pediatric Surgeon Kelly Miller, Allegheny General Hospital, relocated out of PA in January 2003 • Orthopedic Surgeon Eric Nabors, specializing in spinal surgery, relocated to North Carolina August 1, 2003 due to the liability insurance crisis • Plastic Surgeon Martin Nee, Pittsburgh, retired in his early 50’s in 2003, citing the unavailability of occurrence insurance as a large factor in his decision • Neurosurgeon Dr. Nyak, Pittsburgh and surrounding communities, retired abruptly in August, 2002, citing liability issues as a factor • Respiratory Disease Specialist Walter O'Donnell, Allegheny General Hospital, relocated to Massachusetts in January 2002 • Radiologist James Oliver, UPMC, moved to Charlotte, NC in 2003 • Orthopedic Surgeon Richard Pantalone, Jefferson Regional Medical Center, specializing in complex hand surgery, closed his practice in 2003 and is relocating to Wisconsin • Cardiologist John Paulowski, Allegheny General Hospital, relocated to Ohio in September 2001 • General Surgeon Rob Pendrak, Allegheny General Hospital, relocated to Florida in February 2002 • Radiologist Arlene Peterson, UPMC, moved to Tucson, AZ in 2002 • Radiologist Mark Peterson, UPMC, moved to Tucson, AZ in 2002 • Opthalmologist Misha Pless, Eye and Ear Hospital, will relocate to Boston, MA in 2004 • Orthopedic Surgeon Mike Prayson, UPMC, will relocate to Dayton, Ohio, where he will become Director of Surgery, early in 2004 • Pathologist Steve Raab, Allegheny General Hospital, relocated to Illinois in May 2001 • Perinatologist Phillip Rauk, Magee Women's Hospital, relocated to Minnesota in 2003 • Gastroenterologist Pamela Reed, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, relocated to Kentucky in 2003 • Cardiologist Nathaniel Reichek, Allegheny General Hospital, relocated to New York in April 2001 • Orthopedic Surgeon Mary Lynn Scovazzo relocated to Tacoma, Washington • Oral and Maxilofacial Surgeon Zakir Shaikh, Allegheny General Hospital, is moving to Florida in 2003 • Neurosurgeon Peter Sheptak, UPMC Presbyterian, gave up surgery in 2003 • Cardiologist Rizwan Siddiqui, Allegheny General Hospital, relocated to Michigan in July 2001 • Radiation Oncologist Maira Simental, Allegheny General Hospital, relocated to California in June 2003 • Cardiothoracic Surgeon Deepak Singh, Allegheny General Hospital, is "moving out of Pennsylvania" in 2003 • Perinatologist Richard Sweet, Magee Women's Hospital, relocated to California in 2003
• Pathologist Marcus Simpson, Allegheny General Hospital, relocated to North Carolina in May 2002 • Perinatologist Cynthia Sims, Magee Women's Hospital, relocated to W. Virginia in 2003 • Ophthalmologist Laurence Sudesh, Allegheny General Hospital, relocated to California in February 2002 • Ophthalmologist Rattehili Sudesh, Allegheny General Hospital, relocated to California in February 2002 • Pain Management Specialist William Sutherland relocated to the South in 2003 • Cardiothoracic Surgeon Gary Szydlowski, Allegheny General Hospital, relocated out of Allegheny County in January 2002; he is currently practicing in the Lehigh Valley • Neurosurgeon James Uselman left PA in 2003 • Plastic Surgeon Richard Vagley, Pittsburgh Institute of Plastic Surgery, stopped “treating certain emergencies which I know translate into a greater liability,” in 2003, and has activated his medical licenses in other states "just in case" • Neurosurgeon Frank Vertosick, Western Pennsylvania Hospital, ceased doing surgery in 2003 • Oral and Maxilofacial Surgeon Christopher Viozzi, Allegheny General Hospital, is relocating to Minnesota in 2003 • Ob/Gyn Nichole Waltrip, Western Pennsylvania Hospital, left Pennsylvania in 2003 • Only one of the past four graduates of the Vascular fellowship at the University of Pittsburgh Health System has remained in Pennsylvania, because she is married to the Chairman of the Department, according to Chief of the Division of Vascular Surgery Michael S. Makaroun Hospital and Other Effects: • Allegheny General Hospital reports a three month wait for screening mammograms due to a shortage of radiologists to read results • Magee Women’s Hospital reports a two month wait for routine mammograms and a five day to three week wait for women with palpable masses • Magee’s Breast Center, which does 40,000 routine mammograms and 17,000 additional procedures at six sites per year, has been unsuccessfully attempting to recruit radiologists to read mammograms for two years • South Hill Radiology Associates was forced to abandon practice at South Side Hospital, UPMC, after more than 50 years of continuous service due to an inability to recruit sufficient numbers of board certified radiologists • Pittsburgh Mercy Health System is ceasing ambulance services provided from four bases by Mercy Mobile Care in July, 2002, citing, in part, substantial increases in professional medical liability and malpractice insurance premiums • UPMC Passavant Hospital has closed its obstetrics unit which previously provided services for 1,800 births per year • UPMC Passavant Hospital (Cranberry), formerly St. Francis Hospital, has shut down its emergency department • The University of Pittsburgh Medical School reports that three out of four doctors graduating from the school leave the state • University of Pittsburgh Medical Center’s mini-fellowship in endovascular surgery, offered to practicing physicians throughout the country, has been unable to fill its slots due to the inability of applicants to secure malpractice insurance in Pennsylvania for a three month period, according to Vascular Chief Michael Makaroun, who further notes that UPMC’s fellowship charges no tuition while similar programs can charge up to $30,000 for three months of training
BEAVER COUNTY: Physician Effect: • General Surgeon David Snyder, New Brighton, closed his practice on Dec. 31, 2002 and is currently weighing out-of-state options, according to the Allegheny Times • General Surgeon Bradley Thompson, The Medical Center, will relocate to New Orleans, Louisiana early in 2004 after 21 years of practice in PA, where his malpractice premiums will be about 60% of what they are in PA • Orthopedic Surgeon Linda Thompson, The Medical Center, will relocate to New Orleans, Louisiana early in 2004 after 19 years of practice in PA, where her malpractice premiums will be about 60% of what they are in PA • Five Ob/Gyns at The Medical Center have decided to eliminate obstetrics in 2003, reducing the Medical Center's complement of obstetricians to 8; last year it had 15, according to CEO Norm Mitry • The Medical Center has announced that 11 physicians on staff have either quit practicing in PA in the past year and a half or intend to do so in coming months due to exorbitant medical malpractice insurance premiums, according to hospital CEO Norm Mitry; affected specialties include general surgery, orthopedic surgery, neurosurgery, urology, Ob/Gyn and primary care. Mitry further notes: that none of the positions has been filled: "….it's very difficult to attract physicians into the state. People are very resistant to some here because of the medical lability crisis."
BEDFORD COUNTY: Physician Effect: • Ob-Gyn Jean Ann Bialas moved to Cumberland, MD in 2001 to save $50,000 • The county’s only orthopaedic surgeon left PA in October, 2001, according to the PA Orthopaedic Society
BERKS COUNTY: Physician Effect: • Ob/Gyn John Anderson, Reading Hospital, retired at the age of 59 • Anesthesiologist Chris Berg, Reading Hospital, is leaving for Florida • Ob/Gyn John Bower, Reading Hospital, took early retirement • Radiologist David Brink, Reading Hospital, relocated to Alabama in 2002 • Family Practitioner Benson Chin, St. Joseph Medical Center, left PA • Internist Francisco Daniels, Reading Hospital, relocated to Frederick Maryland in 2004 • Family Practitioner Alison Dietrich relocated to California in 2003 • Family Practitioner Ethan Dietrich relocated to New York in 2003 • Ophthalmologist Eric Farber, St. Joseph Medical Center, left PA • Ob/Gyn Stephen Fehnel, Reading Hospital, was forced to eliminate obstetrics in 2003 due to the cost of insurance and the risk of a lawsuit after 20 years without a suit • Cardiologist William Finneran moved his practice to New Jersey in 2003 • ENT Surgeon Edward Gabalski, Reading Hospital, left PA for New York • Family Practitioner Bruce Goodson, Twin Valley Medical Group, Morgantown, relocated to North Carolina in 2003 • Orthopedic Surgeon Mark Hines, Commonwealth Orthopedic Associates, on staff at Reading and St. Joseph Hospitals, moved to the Carolinas in 2003, noting that “It’s just too hard to practice medicine in Pennsylvania.” Colleagues considered him one of the best in the area and he’d never had a malpractice case filed against him. • Ob/Gyn David Hoffman closed his Ob/Gyn and infertility practice Dec. 2, 2002 • Neurosurgeon Eric Holm has given up all surgery • Internist Jim Hu is leaving Pennsylvania • Plastic Surgeon Emely Karandy, Reading Hospital, formerly of Philadelphia, is currently working as an employed physician in occupational health services , and notes “I sleep better at night without the stress of paying upwards of six figures for malpractice insurance before I can treat my first patient. I now refer to other specialists and am finding that increasingly difficult.” • Radiologist Marilyn Kerchner, Reading Hospital, relocated to California in 2002 • Pulmonary Medicine and Rehabilitation Specialist David Kim, St. Joseph Medical Center, left PA • Ob/Gyn Antone Kleiner, Reading, retired prematurely on September 1, 2003 due to the liability crisis, following 25 years of service to the community • Endocrinologist Steve Kochu relocated to Kentucky in 2004 • Cardiovascular Surgeon Fred Lough will relocate to Texas in June 2004 • Internist Phot Luisiri, Emkey Arthritis and Osteoporosis Clinic, relocated to Chicago in 2003 • Ob/Gyn Gerard Malick, Reading, retired prematurely on September 1, 2003 due to the liability crisis, following 25 years of service to the community • Pulmonary Disease Specialist Edward Michel, St. Joseph Medical Center, left PA • Dr. Andrew Morris relocated to Long Island, NY in 2003 • Occupational/Rehabilitation Specialist Vernon Morris, St. Joseph Medical Center, left PA • Orthopedic Surgeon Edward Pan, Commonwealth Orthopedic Associates, took early retirement effective June 30, 2003 • Opthalmology Resident Parag Parekh, Reading Hospital, will relocate to continue his training at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore in June 2004, noting "we had to weight many factors when deciding whether to stay or leave, and the toxic litigation climate cannot be ignored." • Anesthesiologist Leena Paul, St. Joseph Medical Center, left PA • Martin Pourkesale relocated to Florida in 2003 • Ob/Gyn Peter Schwartz, affiliated with the ob/gyn residency program at the Reading Hospital, reports that the program attracted more than 100 applicants per year eight years ago, but this year there were only 23 applicants and only 10 who appear highly qualified • Radiologist Pranav Shah, Reading Hospital, relocated to New Jersey in 2001 • Family Practitioner Wolfgang Shay, Pottstown Memorial, St. Joseph’s and Good Samaritan, Lebanon, was forced to eliminate newborn circumcisions, as only pediatricians are now being covered automatically for this procedure and family practitioners must pay $6,000 surchrage, despite reimbursements of only $100 per circumcision • Pulmonary Specialist John Shuman of Reading retired early • Pulmonary Specialist Gio Torri left Reading for New York • Anesthesiologist Manuel Uribe, St. Joseph Medical Center, left PA • General Surgeon Franklin M. Wolfe retired, placing the following ad in the local newspaper: “It is with deepest regret that I announce that I am retiring from surgery due to the exorbitantly high cost of malpractice insurance.” • Anesthesiologist Emad Younan, St. Joseph Medical Center, left PA • Following receipt of a malpractice bill for $106,000, a Berks county general surgeon was forced to retire Hospital and Other Effects: • Dr. Nabil Muallen, Reading Hospital, reports delivering a baby whose mother had all of her prenatal care in Philadelphia, but who had to find alternative care 60 miles away because her 37 year-old obstetrician was forced to give up OB to reduce liability premiums • Reading Hospital is unable to obtain, at any price, malpractice coverage exceeding state minimum requirements up to $10 million, but can purchase coverage OVER 10 million, creating a de facto $10 million “deductible” which would have to be covered by the hospital’s own reserves
BLAIR COUNTY: Physician Effect: • Internist Jeffrey Binney, Altoona, will relocate to Pinehurst, North Carolina April 1, 2004 • Ob/Gyn Barry Janoff, Bon Secours Holy Family Hospital, left medicine in January 2003 due to an inability to afford malpractice insurance • Orthopedic Surgeon Martin Jenter, Altoona, left Pennsylvania in 2003 • Ob/Gyn Jerusha Kemala, Altoona Hospital, relocated to Maryland in March 2003 • ER Specialist Don Ranatunga, stopped practicing in 2003 due to a 300% insurance increase, after his insurance company folded; previously, he had retired from full-time duty at Altoona Hospital and was working six days a month at another area hospital • Orthopedic Surgeon Dave Welker, Altoona, left Pennsylvania in 2003
BRADFORD COUNTY: Physician Effect: • Ob/Gyn Robert Berk left practice at end of March, 2002 Hospital and Other Effects: • A 100% increase in malpractice premiums has forced the Guthrie Clinic in Sayre to delay implementation of computerized order entry, computerized prescription writing and modernization of surgical areas, all of which would enhance patient safety and medical quality, according to CEO Kevin Carey, M.D • Robert Packer Hospital has announced a work force reduction of 88 employees as a result of cost-cutting measures, due in part to “a major double digit increase in the cost of providing malpractice insurance,” according to President William Vanaskie
BUCKS COUNTY: Physician Effect: • Ob/Gyn Robert Auerbach, Lower Bucks County, retired early in 2004 • Ob/Gyn Richard Baker, closed his Quakertown office, eliminated obstetrics and now practices only out of his Bethlehem office • Orthopedic Surgeon Tom Beck moved to Ocean City, Maryland, where his malpractice premium dropped from $103,000 to around $30,000. His three-surgeon group also closed its Northeast Philadelphia office. • Gynecological Oncologist Richard Belch no longer does surgery in Bucks County as of 2004 • Ob/Gyn Robert Berk, Center for Women's Health, the largest Ob/Gyn group in Bucks County, and seven associates will drop obstetrical care on Nov. 30, 2003 in order to maintain their million-dollar plus insurance at affordable levels; previously, the group delivered 50-75 babies each month • General and Vascular Surgeon Richard Berg relocated to Ohio • Ob/Gyn Steven Block, Sellersville, has dropped OB • Ob/Gyn Neil Bluebond, Center for Women’s Health, eliminted obstetrics November 2003 • ENT Matthew Blum, Grandview Hospital, retired from medicine in 2003; also an attorney, Dr. Blum will work fulltime for a plaintiff’s medical liability firm in Philadelphia • Orthopedic Surgeon Francis Boland retired on Dec. 31, 2001, in the wake of his cancellation by Clarendon Insurance • General Surgeon Wade Bollinger of Doylestown Surgical Associates moved to MO • Orthopedic Surgeon Dr. Bromberg, Warminster, relocated • Vascular Surgeon T. Wistar Brown, Quakertown, retired • Orthopedic Surgeon Douglas Boylan, of the three-member group Doylestown Orthopedic Specialists, was forced to give up surgery for three weeks, along with his two associates, after receiving a liability premium increase of 160% to $184,000 per doctor. The group was forced to sign with the JUA for coverage with assistance from the hospital, which wanted to provide better orthopedic coverage in the ER • Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Specialist Blackshear Bryan, Doylestown Hospital, relocated to Montana on Jan. 1, 2003 in search of “a more physician-friendly environment with lower costs and better reimbursement • ENT Matt Bucko, Central Montgomery Medical Center, who had retired previously in 2003, has passed away • Anesthesiologist Marc Buono, St. Mary’s Medical Center, is taking a position in Florida in 2003, which is much more financially attractive due, in large part, to skyrocketing liability premiums in PA • Internist Kristin Buck, Peace Valley Internal Medicine, left the practice July 12, 2003 - her plans have not yet been determined • Ob/Gyn John Carlson retired early in 2003 • Orthopedic Surgeon Richard Cautilli, Langhorne, eliminated surgery • The 8-physician Center for Women's Health, the largest Ob/Gyn group in Bucks County, will drop obstetrical care on Nov. 30, 2003 in order to maintain their million-dollar plus insurance at affordable levels; the group delivered 50-75 babies each month • Central Bucks Pediatricians Group, Doylestown, is no longer performing “well” visits on children over the age of two due to the liability crisis • Internist Chanta Chawla, Levittown, left clinical practice for industry in 2003 • General and Vascular Surgeon Harish Chawla, Levittown, retired early in 2003 • Internist Beatrice Cohen relocated to Ft. Lauderdale, Florida on July 1, 2003 • Orthopedic Surgeon Martin Cohen, Warminster, moved his practice to Bethlehem, PA • Cardiologist Yale Cohen, St. Mary's Medical Center, Langhorne, relocated to Ft. Lauderdale, Florida on July 1, 2003 • Pulmonogist Annette Colavita, Doylestown Hospital, left PA in 2003 • Ob/Gyn Elizabeth Crowe, Bristol, relocated the majority of her practice to New Jersey • Orthopedic Surgeon Frank Cuce, Frankford and St. Mary’s Hospitals, moved to North Carolina in 2003, after 30 years of practice in Langhorne, due to a premium increase from $95,000 in 2002 to $140,000 despite having no lawsuits filed against him • Infectious Disease Specialist Pia DeGirolamo, Grand View, North Penn and Quakertown Hospitals, retired prematurely in her forties in 2003; her partner is having great difficulty replacing her • Nephrologist Thomas DelGiorno is leaving Doylestown Hospital in 2004, leaving the institution with only two nephrologists • Radiologist Charles DePena, Upper Bucks Radiology, on staff at Grandview Hospital, relocated to Iowa, citing malpractice premiums as the reason for his decision. The group has been unsuccessfully attempting to recruit additional radiologists for some time • Ob/Gyn Eileen Engel established a gyn-only independent practice, with no obstetrics and no surgery, in Warrington, following the closure of her five-physician group, Engel, Smith and Associates in 2002, citing malpractice premiums as the primary reason for the closure • Internist Michael Flood, Doylestown, relocated to Wisconsin in 2003 • General Surgeon Francis Ford, Doylestown Hospital, is retiring earlier than planned in 2003 • General Surgeon Irwin Franklin, Warminster, retired early • Orthopedic Surgeon Victor Frankel, Warminster, stopped doing surgery • Ob/Gyn Irwin Friedman, Langhorne, retired early • Allergist Mary Fontana-Penn, Doylestown Hospital, relocated to North Carolina in July 2003 • ENT Specialists John and Judy Gallagher are having difficulty recruiting additional ENTs to their practice due to high liability and low reimbursements • Orthopedic Surgeon Gregory Gallant, of the three-member group Doylestown Orthopedic Specialists, was forced to give up surgery for three weeks, along with his two associates, after receiving a liability premium increase of 160% to $184,000 per doctor. The group was forced to obtain coverage with the JUA with assistance from the hospital, which wanted to provide better orthopedic coverage in the ER • General Surgeon Ruth George, Quakertown, relocated to Ohio • General Surgeon Richard Goldfarb left clinical practice for industry in 2003 • Family Practitioner Rebecca Haggard relocated to Idaho in 2003 • Ob/Gyn Amy Harvey, Center for Women’s Health, eliminated obstetrics in November 2003 • Anesthesiologist Bill Henick, St. Mary’s Medical Center, is relocating to New York in2003 • Pulmonologist Donna Hogue, Doylestown Hospital, left PA in 2003; previously, there were seven pulmonologists on staff - with the departure of Dr. Hogue, there will be only three • Psychiatrist Harvey Itskowitz, Lower Bucks County, relocated • Orthopedic Surgeon Thomas Javian retired early • Orthopedic Surgeon William Johnson, Frankford and St. Mary’s Hospitals, moved to North Carolina in 2003, after 30 years of practice in Langhorne, due to a premium increase from $95,000 in 2002 to $140,000 , despite having no lawsuits filed against him • General Surgeon Subhash Karnik, Warminster, retired early • Ob/Gyn Mark Kuhn, Center for Women’s Health, eliminated obstetrics in November 2003 • Pulmonologist Neil LaBove, Grand View Hospital and Central Montgomery Medical Center, relocated to Rhode Island in July 2003 • General Surgeon Elihu Ledesma, Lower Bucks County, retired early in 2003 • Orthopedic Surgeon Robert Levenberg, Warminster, has stopped operating • Ophthalmologist Mark Levitan, Lower Bucks County, relocated • Orthopedic Surgeon Robert Liebenberg, Levittown, has stopped doing surgery • Pulmonologist Lorie Loreman, Doylestown, moved to Arizona • Ob/Gyn Dane Anne Lovell, Doylestown Hospital, of the five-member group Engel, Smith and Associates, one of the largest Ob/Gyn practices in Central Bucks County, moved to Ohio in September 2002, citing malpractice premium increases as the reason for her departure. The practice closed October 20, 2002. • Orthopedic Surgeon Stephen Lowe, Lower Bucks County, has stopped operating and closed the NE Philadelphia office of his three-surgeon practice • General Surgeon Gregory Lynch, Lower Bucks County, relocated • Psychiatrist Satyen Madkaiker, Lower Bucks County, relocated • Ob/Gyn Irene Magran, Doylestown Hospital, of the five-member group Engel, Smith and Associates, one of the largest Ob/Gyn practices in Central Bucks County, is finalizing plans to leave PA as her practice closes October 20, 2002, citing malpractice premium increases and expiring coverage as reasons • General Surgeon Roderick McKee, Lower Bucks County, relocated to New Hampshire • Pathologist Mary Meihofer, Doylestown Pathology Associates, relocated to Harrisburg in July 2003 • Radiologist Michael Miller relocated to Maine • Vascular Surgeon Norman Miller, Lower Bucks County, relocated to Indiana • Radiologist Robert Miller relocated to North Carolina • Orthopedic Surgeon David Mino, Levittown, retired early in 2004 • Ob/Gyn John Missanelli, Bristol, relocated to California in 2003; he stopped delivering babies on June 1, 2002, and 70 current OB patients were forced to find another OB. Since 1973, Dr. Missanelli has delivered about 10,000 babies in Bucks County. Previously, he had moved the bulk of his practice to Roncocas, NJ, where he was paying $64,000 a year for malpractice insurance—one half of what he’d been paying in PA • General Surgeon Dr. Morin relocated to the midwest • Plastic Surgeon Jeyaseelan Noble, Morrisville, retired early in 2003 • Dr. Theodore Onifer, a retired physician, serves on the board of Health link Medical Center, Southampton, which provides free health care to the working poor, but is unable to provide medical care due to insurance cost and risk as of 2003 • Family Practitioner Robert O'Reilly, Upper Southampton, and wife, an RN, moved to Maine following 19 years in Bucks County, a double loss to Doylestown Hospital • Neurosurgeon David Pagnanelli, Doylestown, relocated to North Carolina • General/Vascular Surgeon Diane Palladino, Lower Bucks County, relocated to New Hampshire in 2003 • Radiation Oncologist Dhaval Parikh, Highpoint Cancer Center, is relocating to Ohio in 2003 • Orthopedic Surgeon Dr. David Pashman of Warminster has stopped operating • Plastic Surgeon Jaykumar Patel retired early • Orthopedic Surgeon Ronald Pitkow, Bristol, eliminated surgery in 2003 • Ob/Gyn Dr. David Podrasky of Langhorne, St. Mary’s Medical Center, closed his 18 year-old practice, which delivered about 175 babies each year, and has taken a position as house physician, supervising residents in the Ob/Gyn training program. Prior to closing his practice, he took no salary since March to pay $9,500 /month in malpractice premiums. For a time in 2001, Dr. Podrasky and 12 associates worked second jobs at St. Mary’s Medical Center to earn enough money to cover their malpractice premiums • Pulmonologist Michael Pomerantz, Doylestown Hospital, will close his practice on December 12, 2003 • Family Practitioner Richard Price retired prematurely in 2003 • Internist Elizabeth Rabin, practicing in Yardley, retired early in 2003 at the age of 46 • Neurosurgeon Murray Robinson, Warminster, moved to New Jersey • Emergency Department Director Kathleen Roeder took early retirement from clinical practice February 28, 2002, when the PHICO insolvency forced her group to find renewal coverage in 30 days at nearly triple the cost • Internist Jim Rogers, Quakertown, moved to Florida • Ob/Gyn Lester Ruppersberger eliminated obstetrics November 2003 • Orthopedic Surgeon Robert Ruth, general orthopedic and hand surgery, Levittown, relocated to California in 2003 • Cardiologist Amy Scally, Sellersville, moved to New Jersey • Radiation Oncologist Barbara Schlager, Director of Radiation Oncology at St. Mary’s Regional Cancer Center, retired early five days before her 55th birthday, citing the medical liability crisis in a letter in the local newspaper as one of the main reasons for her early retirement • Endocrinologist Diane Schmidt, Grand View Hospital, can no longer see consultations or in-patients, and has limited her practice to office visits only as a result of her practice's inability to recruit a new associate over the past three years to handle patient workload • Psychiatrist Michael Schwartz, Lower Bucks County, relocated • Ob/Gyn Stephanie Schwartz, Langhorne, eliminated obstetrics December 2003 • Ob/Gyn D. Schwartzman, Quakertown, has dropped obstetrics and relocated to Bethlehem • Neurosurgeon Joseph Scogna experienced premium increases from $100,000 in 2001 to $400,000 in 2002 • General Surgeon Mubarik Shah, Langhorne, retired early • Orthopedic Surgeon Carl Simons, Penndel, moved to Minnesota • Ob/Gyn Tony Smith, Doylestown Hospital, of the five-member group Engel, Smith and Associates, one of the largest Ob/Gyn practices in Central Bucks County, moved to the midwest in October, 2002, citing premium increases from $51,000 to $121,000 over the past two years and expiring coverage as reasons. The practice closed October 20, 2002. • Orthopedic Surgeon Barry Snyder, Levittown, Chief of Orthopedics at Temple Lower Bucks Hospital and on staff at St. Mary’s Medical Center, has limited his practice to operating only one day a week instead of three and discontinued ER, to reduce his premium by approximately $30,000 to $56,000 • Endocrinologist Jay Springer, Grand View Hospital, can no longer see consultations or in-patients, and has limited her practice to office visits only as a result of her practice's inability to recruit a new associate over the past three years to handle patient workload • Orthopedic Surgeon Herbert Stein, Lower Bucks County, has stopped operating • Stoneridge Ob/Gyn Associates, the largest practice affiliated with Sellersville’s Grand View Hospital, was forced to get insurance through a 12-hospital consortium at a 50% increase, or $100,000 per doctor, when its insurer decided to pull out of SE PA • Orthopedic Surgeon Wayne Stuart, Quakertown, gave up surgery in 2004 • Family Practitioner William Sugden, Buckingham Family Medicine, retired and left the practice on July 1, 2003 • Dermatologist Norman Sykes, Quakertown, retired early in 2004 • Ob/Gyn David Tannenbaum, Doylestown, was forced to close his six-year old private practice to be employed by a hospital-owned large practice in Montgomery County in 2004 • Trauma Surgeon Sidney Vail, Director of the Trauma Center at St. Mary’s Medical Center, relocated to Virginia • Ob/Gyn Fara Vikoren, Doylestown, eliminated surgery in 2003 and will do gynecology only • Ob/Gyn Anne Walker, Center for Women’s Health, eliminated obstetrics in November 2003 • Ob/Gyn Wendy Warner, Center for Women’s Health, eliminated obstetrics in November 2003 • Orthopedic Surgeon J. Michael Whitaker, of the three-member group Doylestown Orthopedic Specialists, was forced to give up surgery for three weeks, along with his two associates, after receiving a malpractice premium increase of 160% to $184,000 per doctor. The group was forced to sign with the JUA for coverage with assistance from the hospital, which wanted to provide better orthopedic coverage in the ER • Family Practitioner Jeff Wilkins, Upper Bucks County, has given up clinical practice and accepted a position with a pharmaceutical company • Orthopedic Surgeon Dane Wukich, Quakertown, relocated to Ohio in 2003 • Ob/Gyn Nathan Zuckerman, Langhorne, retired early in 2003 • Cardiologist Mark Zweben, Langhorne, relocated to Delaware in 2003 Hospital and Other Effects: • Doylestown Hospital lost money in 2001, according to the PA Health Care Cost Containment Council, due in part, to increased malpractice premiums, and expects to lose money again in 2002 as malpractice coverage has increased from $1.9 million for 2001 to $4.8 million for 2002, according to CEO Richard Reif • Doylestown Hospital reports that only five of eight orthopedic surgeons on staff are able to take ER call, as one large three-doctor group can no longer perform surgery due to loss of insurance coverage and inability to pay a 160% increase to the JUA • Doylestown Hospital’s VP and Chief Medical Officer Edwin Knopf reports that he used to get 12-15 inquiries a month from physicians interested in coming to the hospital—now he doesn’t get any • Doylestown Women’s Health Center, Doylestown Hospital, experienced malpractice increases from $50,000 to $80,000 in the past year and was forced to lay off employees as a result of the increase, according to Ob/Gyn Jean Fitzgerald • Grand View Hospital’s premiums increased from $900,000 in 2000 to $1.8 million in 2001 to $3 million in 2002, according to CEO Stuart Fine, who says that comes to more than $8,200 a day or $350 an hour. • Grand View Hospital closed the Medic 152 ambulance substation on Bethlehem Pike; officials cite rising malpractice premiums coupled with a downtown in reimbursements. The substation alone would have lost $130,000 this year if it had been kept open • Grand View Hospital closed its 20 bed Skilled Nursing Unit in 2002, due in part to “significant increases in the cost of medical malpractice insurance, “ according to CEO Stuart Fine. • Interventional Radiology at Doylestown Hospital is having difficulty recruiting radiologists because of liability and low reimbursements • St. Luke’s Quakertown lost money in 2001, due, in part, to malpractice premiums • St. Luke’s Quakertown no longer has a gynecological surgeon on staff • St. Luke’s Quakertown has lost six specialists since last year • St. Mary’s Medical Center, Middletown, estimates that 13 physicians have left or scaled back services because of malpractice insurance
BUTLER COUNTY: Physician Effect: • Dr. James Byers retired in 2003, due primarily to the liability crisis
CAMBRIA COUNTY: Physician Effect: • Pathologist Stephen T. Bush, who had for years of semi-retirement accepted requests to provide temporary pathology services for small hospitals, has been forced to discontinue providing these services “due to the unreasonable risks of malpractice claims and increases in malpractice insurance premiums,” and has limited his professional activity to providing expert testimony and case reviews in workers’ compensation claims • Neurosurgeon P. Madson relocated to California in 2004 when he could not obtain malpractice coverage when he decided to begin a solo practice in PA • Orthopedic Surgeon Michael Scaglione, Miner's Hospital, left Pennsylvania
CARBON COUNTY: Physician Effect: • Vascular Surgeon Homayoun Hashemi, Palmerton Hospital, is moving to Virginia in 2003 • Dr. Cheryl Lipson, president of the Carbon County Medical Society, has been unsuccessfully attempting to recruit young physicians to her practice • Ob/Gyn Satish Nayak, Palmerton Hospital, has cut back his practice to part-time and was forced to close his office in Tamaqua (Schuylkill County) in 2002 due to premium increases from $20,000 10 years ago, to $50,000 in 2001, to an estimated $75,000 in 2002. • OB/Gyn Alessandro Boschi, Palmerton Hospital’s only fulltime obstetrician, was forced to finance his malpractice premium in 2001, the first time he had to do so in his 13 years in practice
CENTRE COUNTY: Physician Effect: • Family Practitioner Stephen Pandolph can no longer accept patients who may end up in a nursing home • ER Physician Randy Payne, Port Matilda, gave up medicine in 2003 due to constant threats of malprcatice • Ob/Gyn Gerald Clair has given up obstetrics and gynecological surgery • An ER Specialist relocated from Centre County to Virginia in June, 2003 • An Ob/Gyn relocated from Centre County to Wisconsin in June, 2003 • A Maxilo-facial Surgeon left Centre County in June, 2003 Hospital and Other Effects: • Penn State Hershey Medical Center closed its psychiatric inpatient unit for older adults on March 1, 2003, due in part to rapidly escalating medical liability premiums, which have risen from $8.8 million in 1998-99, to $16.8 million in 2001-2002 and to $22.2 million for 2002-03. Other reductions have been in equipment and leading-edge investments and scaling back various hospital services, according to CEO Hefner as reported in the Centre Daily Times.
CHESTER COUNTY: Physician Effect: • Dermatologist Alice Androkites, Paoli, moved to Maine • General Surgeon Manoucher Afshari relocated to Maine in 2003, but retained a PA medical license • Pulmonologist Frank Barsch, Brandywine Hospital, following 18 years of service, has moved to Virginia • Internist Marc Blossom relocated to Montana in December 2002 after 15 years as a primary care provider in Chester County • Primary Care Specialist Daniel Bouti is leaving his 20-year old established practice and moving upstate in 2004 to work part time in order to obtain lower medical liability premiums • Pediatrician Marie Breslin, West Chester, stopped practicing medicine in her 30’s • ENT Eric Carlson, Chester County Hospital/Fitzgerald Mercy Hospital, has retired • Family Practitioner John Carlson, Chester County Hospital, has moved to Texas • Neurosurgeon Vinnie Chitale relocated to Georgia in 2003, but retained a PA medical license • Family Practitioner Ron Ciccone, MLP Physicians in Exton and Newtown Square, accepted a salaried position in New Jersey on September 1, 2003 after 15 years of private practice • Ob/Gyn Ronald Clauhs has given up obstetrics • Urologist Joseph Conti, Paoli Hospital, has left PA. Last year Dr. Conti resigned from S. Chester Medical Center staff to continue practicing at other area hospitals due to increased workload and inability to recruit a urologist • Crozer Keystone Health System was forced to purchase the private neurosurgical practice of the four neurosurgeons on staff at the hospital in 2003 in order to keep it from closing and all four staff neurosurgeons from retiring or relocating • ENT David Cunningham, Phoenixville Hospital and Bryn Mawr Hospital, moved to North Carolina • Cardiac Surgeon Paul Davis, Paoli Meorial Hospital, moved to Delaware • Anesthesiologist Jay Dua died and no replacement has been able to be found • General Surgeon Willian Dellevigne has retired early • Plastic Surgeon Frank DeLone, Chester Council Medical Center, moved his practice to Delaware in 2003, but retained a PA medical license • Ob/Gyn Dennis Easter moved to Indiana due to low reimbursements and high malpractice premiums • Family Practitioner Barbara Elko, Phoenixville Hospital, left private practice for a salaried polsition as an inpatient "hospitalist" due to the liability crisis • Ob/Gyn Joseph Ferroni, Malvern, stopped doing obstetrics in 2003 • Ob/Gyn David Fink, Christiana Obstetrics and Gynecology, Jennersville Regional Hospital, was forced to close the Pennsylvania practice in 2003 and is expanding hours at the Delaware office to accommodate patients. Their newspaper ad read: "Forced to Close Our Doors! The Pennsylvania medical malpractice insurance crisis has forced Christiana OB/GYN to close the Jennersville office." • Anesthesiologist Thomas J. Finkelston, United Anesthesia Services, practicing on the Main Line, relocated to Maryland in July 2002, citing “outrageous” malpractice premiums, low reimbursements and an anti-physician atmosphere in Southeastern PA as reasons for his relocation • Thoracic Surgeon James Finnegan, Crozer Medical Center and Riddle Memorial Hospital, closed his 29-year-old PA practice on June 30, 2003; he continues to practice in Woodbury, New Jersey • ENT Steve Fisher was forced to give up surgery, while a younger associate in his practice relocated to Ohio in 2003, but retained a PA medical license • Family Practitioner Stew Foreman, Phoenixville Hospital, moved to Florida • ENT Sara Fowler has moved to Iowa • Trauma/General Surgeon Carlo Gammatoni, Brandywine Hospital, moved to Maine in 2003 • GI Specialist Andrei Gasic, Phoenixville Hospital, moved to Texas • Internist Giselle Geddes, Chester County Hospital, has left medicine • Longtime Ob/Gyn Corazon Gemil stopped delivering babies • General Surgeon William Gerhard, Chester, retired early in 2003, but retained a PA medical license • Neurologist Bruce Grossinger shifted the main portion of his practice to Delaware in 2003, but retained a PA medical license • Ob/Gyn Christina Hamill, Bryn Mawr Hospital, left PA in 2003 • Anesthesiologist Mark Hamill, Bryn Mawr Hospital, left PA in 2003 • General Surgeon Scott Harad left Chester for the midwest in 2003, but retained a PA medical license • ENT Tim Heffron, Phoenixville Hospital, moved to North Carolina • Ob/Gyn Dr. Hendrzak, Paoli Hospital, left in July, 2002 • ENT Maury Hoberman has retired early • Gynecologic Oncologist W. Michael Hogan, Bryn Mawr Hospital, left PA in 2003 • Radiologist James Holstein, chief of staff at Brandywine Hospital, noted in 2003 that his radiology group cannot recruit young physicians • Orthopedic Surgeon Leigh Hopkins, Bryn Mawr Hospital, left PA in 2003 • Anesthesiologist Stephen Houser, Lankenau and Paoli Hospitals, relocated to North Carolina in 2004 • Internist Dwight Johnson, Chester County Hospital, has closed his practice and a accepted a position as a hospitalist at Brandywine Hospital • Hand Surgeon Razaullah Khwaja, Jennersville Regional Hospital, will be doing most of his surgery in Maryland and limiting services to PA patients beginning in 2003 • Internist Kevin Kearns, left practice to take a position at a hospital • Family Practitioner Dean Koukos, West Chester, left private practice in November 2001 to do industrial medicine • Urologist Dr. Deborah Kulp resigned from S. Chester Medical Center staff to continue practicing at other area hospitals due to impossible workload and inability to recruit a urologist associate • ENT William Lovrinic has retired early • Neurosurgeon Samuel Lyness, Brandywine Hospital, closed his practice in April, 2003 and moved to El Paso, Texas. Previously, Dr. Lyness was the primary provider of neurosurgical trauma care in Chester County; his departure will leave only one neurosurgeon in the county and none at Brandywine Hospital. • Ob/Gyn Christine Lyon has given up urogynecology • Internist F. William Maguire, Jennersville Regional Hospital, passed away in 2003 and the hospital expects to have great difficulty replacing him • Neurologist Martin Mandel, Jennersville Regional Hospital, passed away in 2003 and the hospital expects to have great difficulty replacing him • ENT Frances Marschant no longer does surgery • Family Practitioner Tricia Maud left the practice of medicine • Plastic Surgeon Mike McClellans, Chester County Medical Center, moved his practice to Delaware in 2003, but retained a PA medical license • Anesthesiologist Mary McLaughlin, Bryn Mawr Hospital, left PA in 2003 • Internist Richard Morris, Chester County Hospital, relocated to Delaware July 15, 2003 but retained his PA medical license • ENT Specialist Richard Muggee, Phoenixville Hospital, moved to Connecticut; his wife, a pediatric anesthesiologist, also moved to Connecticut • General/Trauma Surgeon George Murr, Brandywine Hospital, moved to Bakersfield, California after 22 years in practice • Geriatrician Willard Nagle, Chester County Hospital, was forced to retire from his part-time practice in 2004 when his malpractice premiums and MCARE assessment exceeded his income • Ob/Gyn Kara Nakisbendi, Lankenau and Paoli Hospitals, stopped delivering babies on Oct. 31, 2002 and opened a fee for service gynecology practice in Ardmore • Radiation Oncologist Marlana Ottinger has moved to Maryland • General Surgeon Jerry Pieden left clinical surgery at the age of 37 to become a medical director at an insurance company • Ob/Gyn Jane Porcelan, Paoli Hospital, has stopped delivering babies • Dermatologist David Powell, Main Line Dermatology, West Chester and Wayne, relocated to Texas Nov. 20, 2003 and his associates have having difficulty accomodating the demand for their services as a result of his departure • Pathologist John Ragowski has retired • Family Practitioner Leon Rapko relocated to Connecticut in 2003 due to low reimbursement and high liability costs • Orthopedic Surgeon Craig Riegel, Brandywine and Paoli Memorial Hospital, specializing in arthroscopic surgery for sports injuries, relocated to Culpepper, Virginia in 2003, where his premium will be $30,000 instead of the $180,000 he currently pays the JUA • Internist Mike Rill, Brandywine Hospital, Lanchester Medical Associates, left PA in 2003 • Internist Diane Rissane, Chester County Hospital, has left private practice and taken a job at the VA • General Surgeon Elisabeth Robinson, Brandywine Hospital, former chair of the trauma department, took a job with the VA in Rochester, New York so she would no longer have to deal with medical malpractice issues • Radiologist Ralph Rossi has retired • General Surgeon Ned Russell, Chester, retired early in 2003, but retained a PA medical license • Cardiologist Rick Samaha, Phoenixville Hospital, left Chester County and took a job at the Philadelphia VA Hosp • Orthopedic Surgeon Mike Sneddon, Bryn Mawr Hospital, moved to Roanoke, VA in 2003 • Cardiologist Joe Stoffer, Paoli, left PA • Endocrinologist Amy Supnick is no longer practicing • Anesthesiologist Clare Thomas, Phoenixville Hospital, relocated to California in 2003 • Valley Forge Ob/Gyn Associates—one member of six doctor staff stopped delivering babies in 2002 • Valley Forge Ob/Gyn Associates—one member of six doctor staff went to work for a pharmaceutical firm in 2002 • Valley Forge Ob/Gyn Associates—one member of six doctor staff left clinical practice completely in 2002 • General Surgeon Phil Waldor, Phoenixville Hospital, moved to Texas • Ob/Gyn Candace Walters, Phoenixville Hospital, moved to Maine • Orthopedic Surgeon Michael Ward, Chester County Hospital, has retired • Opthalmologist Barry Wasserman moved to New Jersey • Internist Keith Weiss, Brandywine Hospital, Lanchester Medical Associates, left PA in 2003 • Ob/Gyn Russell White, Christiana Obstetrics and Gynecology, Jennersville Regional Hospital, was forced to close the Pennsylvania practice in 2003 and is expanding hours at the Delaware office to accommodate patients. Their newspaper ad read: "Forced to Close Our Doors! The Pennsylvania medical malpractice insurance crisis has forced Christiana OB/GYN to close the Jennersville office." • Ob/Gyn Donald Wilson, Brandywine Regional Medical Center, has left medicine • Family Practitioner John Wilson, Warminster, retired early in 2003 • Family Practitioner Mary Wirship, Chester County Hospital, left private practice to become an administrator and part-time clinician for Volunteers in Medicine • Orthopedic Surgeon Charles Wolf has retired and no replacement has been recruited • Internist Robert Zieve, Chadds Ford, relocated to Colorado in February 2004 • Orthopedic Surgeon Daniel Zimet, Brandywine Hospital, relocated to Virginia in 2003 Hospital and Other Effects: • Brandywine Hospital was forced to close its Level II Trauma Center on June 4, 2002 due to a lack of trauma surgeons, according to CEO R. Alan Larson, who cited “soaring malpractice premiums that are driving surgeons out of the state or into retirement.” Severely injured patients must be transported to Philadelphia or Lancaster, about 30 miles away. The hospital says the closure is temporary and is actively recruiting trauma surgeons to replace the University of Pennsylvania Health System surgeons who had previously staffed the unit until that relationship with Penn ended earlier in June. • Brandywine Hospital has lost one of its two neurosurgeons, according to Chief of staff Dr. James Holstein; he was forced to retire due to liability costs • Brandywine Hospital lost $6 million in 2001, according to the PA Health Care Cost Containment Council, due, in part, to increasing malpractice costs • CAT Fund physician payment figures for 1997 showed 1,147 practicing physicians in Chester County—for 2000, only 770 physicians in Chester County paid CAT fund premiums • Jennersville Regional Hospital reported in 2003 that it has only one practicing obstetrician on staff • Jennersville Regional Hospital (formerly Southern Chester Medical Center) lost $4.5 million in 2001, according to the PA Health Care Cost Containment Council, due, in part, to increasing malpractice premiums • Liability costs and reimbursement shortfalls forced closure of the Medic 92 Advanced Life Support Service, based at Paoli Hospital and serving all or part of five boroughs and townships in Chester County, according to Leland White, President of Main Line Health • Phoenixville Hospital has closed the Medic 95 ALS unit, due in part to liability costs as well as poor reimbursements. Consequently, the community will be at a much greater risk because the ER will have less ancillary staff to help decrease waits and treat cases effectively
CLARION COUNTY: Physician Effect: • Family Practitioner Mark Maire, Clarion Hospital, moved to Thailand in August 2003 to do missionary work, citing liability issues as a major factor in his decision • Family Practitioner Kavin Zacour, Clarion Hospital, relocated to Ohio in August, 2003, citing liability issues as a contributing factor
CLEARFIELD COUNTY: Physician Effect: • Pediatric Psychiatrist Dr. Aydin, Dubois Regional Medical Center, left Dubois in 2003 • Pediatric Cardiologist Dr. Chandrashakur, Dubois Regional Medical Center, left Dubois in 2003 • General Surgeon Michael T. Dotsey, Clearfield Hospital, retired July 1, 2002, from a thriving practice at the age of 55 due to insurance costs • Psychiatrist Dr. Fritz, Dubois Regional Medical Center, left Dubois in 2003 • Primary Care Specialist Dr. Moclock, Dubois Regional Medical Center, left Dubois in 2003 • General Surgeon Tim Phillips, Clearfield Hospital, Dr. Dotsey’s associate, was forced to resign his position as 6th District Trustee for the PA Medical Society in order to cover the additional workload • Internist Darren Smeal, Clearfield Hospital, PSU College of Medicine Group, is relocating to Florida in December 2003 • Ob/Gyn Praxido Tagala, Clearfield Hospital, was forced to give up obstetrics • Geriatric Psychiatrist Dr. Tsou, Dubois Regional Medical Center, left Dubois in 2003 • ER Specialist Kip Wenger, Director of Emergency Medicine at Dubois Regional Medical Center, is relocating to Tennessee in May 2004, and, according to a colleague, "is indispensible and probably cannot be replaced!" • Three radiologists at Clearfield Hospital were forced to give up interventional radiologic procedures in 2003 Hospital and Other Effects: • Clearfield Hospital reports that it has only one physician in each of the following specialties left on staff: ENT, General Surgery, Oral Surgery, Orthopedic Surgery, Pediatrics, Ob/Gyn • Clearfield Hospital’s Department of Radiology was instructed by its insurance carrier to eliminate high-risk interventional radiologic procedures such as CT guided biopsies and drainages, and ultrasound guided paracenteses or thoracenteses. Patients requiring these procedures must now travel about an hour to a hospital which offers these services
CLINTON COUNTY: Physician Effect: • Internist Keith Adams, previously forced to close his private practice in Lock Haven, is now working locum tenens in West Virginia "99% of the time" • Orthopedic Surgeon Steven Davis, Jersey Shore Hospital, will relocate to Wisconsin in April 2004; he has never had a lawsuit against him and is the only orthopedic surgeon in rural Clinton County
COLUMBIA COUNTY: Physician Effect: • Dr. Albert Alley cut back his practice due to liability costs • Anesthesiologist David Baucome, Berwick Hospital, left Columbia County in 2003 to take an employed position at another PA hospital • Family Practitioner Francis Bobek was forced to stop delivering babies due to the high cost of malpractice premiums; according to a colleague and patient "This is an example of the CRIME this crisis is. Frank is an excellent doctor - he is mine - he loves OB and is good at it. But because of this crisis, he is forced to stop practicing his passion." • Ob/Gyn Marion Brown, Bloomsburg Hospital, retired in 2002 after 8,000 births, citing malpractice premiums as one of the reasons for her retirement • Orthopedic Surgeon Alice Coyle, Berwick Hospital, is leaving PA in 2003 • Radiologist Dr. Heromin left PA in 2003 • Orthopedic Surgeon Brett Himmelwright who previously terminated staff privileges at Hazleton General and St. Joseph Hospitals in November 2003 due to overwhelming workload created by the departure of all but two other orthopedic surgeons; and continued to practice in Bloomsburg, relocated to New York state in 2004. • Family Practitioner Jody Hutson, Bloomsburg, relocated to South Carolina in November 2003, following major premium increases despite never having had a claim filed against him in the 12 years he has practiced medicine • Anesthesiologist David Kaspeutis, Berwick Hospital, left Columbia County in 2003 to take an employed position at another PA hospital • Family Practitioner Don Remaly retired early and relocated to Charlottesville, Virginia in 2003, where he will serve as swim coach for the Piedmont Family YMCA; previously, he had eliminated delivering babies from his busy family practice • ENT Scott Sackman, Berwick Hospital, is moving to New Jersey in 2003, due to malpractice costs • Dr. Jennifer Stebbing is no longer in PA • Orthopedic Surgeon Peter Terhaar, Berwick and Bloomsburg Hospitals, has moved to New York • Vascular Surgeon Thomas Unrue, Berwick Hospital and Wilkes-Barre General, relocated to Kentucky in 2003 when his premium doubled; Unrue was the only vascular surgeon on staff at Berwick Hospital, and hospital CEO Russell Judd said that recruiting a replacement will be difficult, according to the Berwick Press Enterprise Hospital and Other Effects: • Bloomsburg Hospital lost $1.5 million in 2001, according to the PA Health Care Cost Containment Council, due, in part, to increasing malpractice premiums, and expects to lose another $1 million in 2002, according to CEO Robert Spinelli • Bloomsburg Hospital was hit with a 40% malpractice premium increase, hiking costs by $300,000 in 2001 • Bloomsburg Hospital laid off eight employees and consolidated and eliminated several other positions to offset losses incurred, in part, by increasing malpractice premiums
CRAWFORD COUNTY: Physician Effect: • Dr. Paul Austin left the state in 2003 • Dr. Paul Balmer left the state in 2003 • Family Practitioner J. Henry Burkholder, Meadville Medical Center, who had been delivering babies for more than 15 years, retired in his 50’s due to the malpractice crisis • Family Practitioner Randy Edwards, who also delivered babies, Meadville Medical Center, stopped doing obstetrics • Dr. Susan Estrada left the state in 2003 • Dr. Usa Failor left the state in 2003 • Dr. Christopher MacDonald left the state in 2003 • Family Practitioner Thomas Mitchell, who also delivered babies, Meadville Medical Center, stopped doing obstetrics • General Surgeon Ralph Nazzaro, Titusville, retired early after 25 years in practice “at least in part due to the malpractice situation in this state.” • Ob/Gyn Ronald Vrablic, Meadville Medical Center, eliminated obstetrics last year and now does only part-time gynecology Hospital and Other Effects: • Meadville Medical Center’s Department of Ob/Gyn reports the retirement of a part-time Ob/Gyn at the end of 2002 due to malpractice premiums, leaving only two fulltime Ob/Gyn’s and two family practitioners who deliver babies on staff, according to the chairman of the Ob/Gyn Department • Titusville Hospital reported in 2003 that it was forced to cut ENT services
CUMBERLAND COUNTY: Physician Effects: • Internist David Albright, Belvidere Medical Center, left private practice in 2003 to become a hospitalist for Carlisle Hospital • Internist Sevdalina Boshnakov, Belvidere Medical Center, left private practice in 2003 to become an employee at the VA Hospital • General Surgeon Shawn Bryant relocated to North Carolina in 2003 • Ob/Gyn Steve Cherry, Carlisle Regional Medical Center, of Women’s Health Associates of Carlisle, announced that his group will close its doors Feb., 1, 2003, after their coverage increased from $137,000 last year to $320,000 this year; Dr. Cherry will go to work for Pinnacle Health in Harrisburg. Their three-physician group, which also employed three nurse-midwives, did the majority of the obstetrics work at the hospital. • ENT Burton Cohn retired early in September, 2002 and notes that his two remaining associates have been unable to replace him despite a 2-3 year national search • Pediatrician Doug Halbert, of Jones, Daly, Coldren Associates Pediatrics, Mechanicsburg, left medicine in June, 2003, to join his brother in the family construction business, Halbert Homes • Internist Steven Hattleberg, Belvidere Medical Center, of the Masland Group in Carlisle, relocated to Hagerstown, MD on August 1, 2003 • Ob/Gyn John Lowthian, Carlisle Regional Medical Center, of Women’s Health Associates of Carlisle, closed its doors Feb. 1, 2003 after their coverage increased from $137,000 last year to $320,000 this year; hopefully, he will continue to work as an employee at Carlisle Regional Medical Center. Their three-physician group, which also employed three nurse-midwives, did the majority of the obstetrics work at the hospital. • Ob/Gyn Erich Metzler, Carlisle Regional Medical Center, of Women’s Health Associates of Carlisle, relocated to Green Bay, Wisconsin in 2003 following the closure of the group, the group’s coverage increased from $137,000 in 2001 to $320,000 in 2002; the three-physician group, which also employed three nurse-midwives, did the majority of the obstetrics work at the hospital. • Orthopedic Institute of Pennsylvania, Camp Hill, reports the retirement of two surgeons and relocation of another due to the medical malpractice crisis, and sent letters to their patients near the end of July, 2002 indicating regret for delays in providing services; however, they’ve been unsuccessful in recruiting new surgeons to the group as a result of Pennsylvania’s malpractice situation • Dr. Carolyn Shaeffer, Camp Hill, retired from practice in 2004 Hospital and Other Effects: • Carlisle Regional Medical Center no longer has a surgeon on staff, as of July 2003 • Holy Spirit Hospital, E. Pennsboro Township, expected a 100% malpractice premium increase for 2002, according to risk management director Franchesca Charney
DAUPHIN COUNTY: Physician Effect: • Physicians for Women’s Health, Camp Hill - 10 Ob/Gyn physicians serving 25,000 active patients were almost forced to close their practice on Feb. 15, 2002 because they couldn’t get insurance. Recently, they were able to obtain insurance, but only six members of the group continue to deliver babies • Ob/Gyn Leslie Adams, Pinnacle Health and Holy Spirit Hospital, has cut back his practice due to liability concerns • Cardiovascular Surgeon Bedford Boyleston, Pinnacle Health System and Holy Spirit Health System, is no longer practicing in PA, as his position with a three physician group was “downsized” due to a malpractice premium quote of over $500,000 for the group • Surgeon William Brown, Pinnacle and Holy Spirit Hospitals, is severely curtailing practice as a result of the skyrocketing cost of medical liability insurance and is now only performing GI endoscopy • Ob/Gyn Chris Carey, PSU Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, moved to Phoenix, AZ August 1, 2001 • Anesthesiologist Mark Downey, Pinnacle Health Systems, is moving to Maryland in 2003, due to a better offer and no malpractice concerns • General Surgeon Joseph Esposito, Harrisburg Hospital, Holy Spirit Hospital and Community General Hospital, eliminated vascular surgery in 2004 • General Surgeon David Froehlich, Harrisburg Hospital, Holy Spirit Hospital and Community General Hospital, eliminated vascular surgery in 2004 • Infectious Disease Specialist Nelson Gantz, Pinnacle Health System, relocated to Colorado in 2003, after the hospital downsized his position to part-time, due in part to increased liability costs • Internist Charles Gerlach, Pinnacle Health System, is leaving his medical practice at Goldman Associates to become a funeral director in 2003 • Ob/Gyn John B. Goedecke, Physicians for Womens’ Health, Camp Hill, has decided to retire and two other members of the group are considering leaving PA • Family Practitioner Dudley Gordon left medicine in 2003 to sell hearing aids with his brother • General Surgeon Ken Graf, Harrisburg, enrolled in the Army Reserves as a result of the liability crisis and left for Bosnia in Jaunary 2004 and could be gone for up to two years; an associate notes: "no one will fill in. The extra work will mandate that we will no longer be able to accept MA patients." CHANGE CHANGE CHANGE • Orthopedic Surgeon Steven Grubb has left PA • Ob/Gyn David Halbert, PSU Milton Hershey Medical Center, retired in 2003 • Orthopedic Surgeon James Hamsher has retired prematurely due to an outrageous malpractice tail charge • Cardiothoracic Surgeon James Hart, Pinnacle Health and Holy Spirit Hospitals, left practice in 2003 to go into industry • Orthopedic Surgeon Rex Herbert, Director of the orthopedic residency at Community General Campus of Pinnacle Health Hospitals in Harrisburg, reports that all three graduates of the class of 2000 began practice in PA and have since left the state, three graduates from the class of 2001 have all left PA, one graduate of the class of 2002 has left the state and two graduates of the class of 2003 have left the state • Ob/Gyn Nichole Hoenicke, PSU Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, relocated to St. Louis in the summer of 2003 , along with her husband, who is entering a CT surgery fellowship. Dr. Hoenicke is Hershey’s only pediatric/adolescent gynecologist. • Orthopedic Surgeon Mark Holencik was forced to stop doing surgery and enter non-surgical orthopedics in 2003 due to malpractice premiums • Ob/Gyn George Jeffries, Holy Spirit Hospital, retired in 2003 because his premium costs prohibited maintaining a practice • Cardiothoracic Surgeon Greg Keagy, Harrisburg and Holy Spirit Hospitals, relocated to Wisconsin on Dec. 31, 2003; he notes that another associate will be leaving the state in the near future as well ((change of location)) • Colon Rectal Surgeon John Lange is relocating to Waco, Texas in 2003 • Ob/Gyn Jose Manjon eliminated obstetrics in 2003 and closed his Harrisburg office to relocate to the Harrisburg suburb of Camp Hill • Ob/Gyn Joseph Patruno, PSU Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, moved his practice to Delaware • Pinnacle Health System notes that all five surgical residents who have graduated from its general surgical residency in the past two years have left Pennsylvania to practice • Ob/Gyn Richard Pees, PSU Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, has given up OB • Hand Surgeon Vincent Pellegrini, Hershey, relocated to Maryland in 2004 • Neurosurgeon Steve Powers, Chief of Neurosurgery at the PSU Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, along with another neurosurgeon colleague, left practice at Hershey on June 30, 2002 • Quantum Radiology Group, which provides x-ray services for Pinnacle Health and Holy Spirit Systems, has lost 15 of 43 radiologists in the past several years, according to state radiological society president Tim Farrell • Cardiovascular Surgeon Carolyn Schaeffer, Pinnacle Health and Holy Spirit Hospitals, retired Jan. 1, 2004 secondary to malpractice costs • Cardiothoracic Surgeon Benjamin Sun, PSU Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, left 7/1/02 to accept a position at Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, citing the malpractice/reimbursement climate as significant factors in his decision to leave PA • Neurosurgeon Chris Taleghani, recent graduate from PSU Milton S. Hershey’s respected neurosurgery fellowship, left PA in 2002 due to the malpractice situation, and accepted a position in Kentucky, where his new employer offered set-up assistance and a salary guarantee, both of which most PA hospitals and groups can no longer afford to do • Orthopedic Surgeon John Thompson, Pinnacle Health Hospital, Harrisburg, relocated to Arizona in 2004 • Internist Joe Torchia, Pinnacle and Holy Spirit Hospitals, left practice to take a nonclinical position with Holy Spirit Hospital in 2004 • Ob/Gyn Ellen Tourtelot, PSU Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, gave up OB April 1, 2002 • General Surgeon Jennifer Turner left Heritage Medical Group on June 1, 2003 due to skyrocketing malpractice premiums and relocated to Waco, Texas • Orthopedic Surgeon John York, Pinnacle Health, relocated to Arizona in 2003 • Ob/Gyn Salena Zanotti, PSU Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, moved to Los Angeles June 24, 2002 • The former Chief of Neurosurgery at PSU Milton S. Hershey Medical Center reports that “none of my finishing residents since 1995 have stayed in this state” and residents graduating this year are leaving as well • Ob/Gyn Tom Zarka, with offices in Dauphin and Cumberland counties, is moving to New Hampshire in 2003 • Heritage Medical Group, a Harrisburg-based 10-physician surgical group, has been notified by its insurance carrier that it will not provide coverage for the group to perform morbid obesity procedures. The group had also considered opening a freestanding surgical center, but is unable to do so because it cannot obtain insurance, according to General Surgeon Joseph Esposito • Heritage Medical Group, Harrisburg, is unable to obtain commercial coverage at any price for three new family practitioners and one internist and was forced to obtain coverage through the JUA. Surgeon Joseph Esposito says their broker told them “no private insurance company will cover physicians new to PA.” Hospital and Other Effects: • Pinnacle-Health System is paying $4.1 million for malpractice coverage in 2002, up from $2 million in 2001, according to senior VP Chris Markley, who also notes that the hospital’s insurer, MIIX, exited the PA market at the end of 2002 • Pinnacle-Health System has eliminated two vice president positions, support services and gifts and endowments, in order to reduce increased costs caused in part by a 107% increase in malpractice premiums, according to Chris Markley, senior vice president of community and government relations. • PSU Milton Hershey Medical Center reports premium increases for its employed physicians from $7.6 million in 1998, to $16.3 million in 2001, $18 million in 2003 and expects to pay up to $28.5 million in 2003, according to spokesman Sean Young • PSU Milton Hershey Medical Center’s Dept. of Ob/Gyn reports “despite large ad campaigns, only three applications for our three positions” have been received • A reduced number of qualified neurosurgeons and spine surgeons in Central PA has resulted in a minimum 3 to 6 month wait to see a physician for evaluation and surgical treatment of back and neck pain due to disc disease, according to the Dept. of Neurosurgery at PSU Milton S. Hershey Medical Center
DELAWARE COUNTY: Physician Effect: • Gastroenterologist Jeff Abrahms, Fitzgerald Mercy, moved to New Jersey August, 2000 • General Surgeon Manoucher Afshari left Delaware County for Maine, but retained his PA license • Ob/Gyn Gil Aldifer, Taylor and Chester Crozer Medical Center, is eliminating obstetrics in 2003 • Urologist Samuel Allen was forced to limit his practice to part-time, non surgical • Vascular and Renal Transplant Surgeon John Angstadt, head of transplant surgery at Lankenau and Bryn Mawr Hospitals, moved to Georgia, where his $180,000 premium dropped to $9,000 • Primary Care Specialist Suzette Avetian, Delaware County Memorial Hospital, relocated to Arizona in 2003, citing “liability and low reimbursement problems” • Anesthesiologist Richard Batchelet, Crozer Chester Medical Center, relocated to Alexandria, VA • General/Vascular Surgeon Arthur Baker retired prematurely in August, 2001, but retained his PA medical license • Orthopedic Surgeon Fred Baldwini, of Wayne and Philadelphia, left for New Jersey • Cardiologist Philip Bhark, Taylor Hospital, moved to Massachusetts, November, 2000 • Internist Mark Blossom was forced to leave his practice in Kennett Square in 2003 because of rising malpractice costs; he is now practicing in Montana • ENT Robert Boucher, Riddle Memorial and Crozer Hospitals, has left • Oncologist Robert Boyd, Mercy Fitzgerald Hospital, retired early • Gastroenterologist Michael Brooks, Delaware County Memorial Hospital, left his five-physician group in July, 2003 to work in Wilmington, Delaware, where his liability premiums will drop from around $50,000 a year to about $4,500 a year • Rheumatologist Anna Bueller at Riddle (Media), left Feb. 1 for a position in industry • ENT Eric Carlson, Mercy Fitzgerald Hospital, moved to Illinois • Dr. Nicholas Caputo, age 29, moved from Philadelphia to Arizona • Neurosurgeon Vidyadhar Chitale, Crozer Chester Medical Center and Riddle Memorial, is leaving PA in 2003, along with another associate, leaving only two members of the four member group to cover both hospitals • General/Vascular Surgeon Kevin Claffey, Delaware County Memorial Hospital, Drexel Hill, moved to Kentucky in August, 2001 • Orthopedic Surgeon Martin Coleman, Havertown, moved to Virginia July, 2002 • Family Practitioner Lynne Cooke, Delaware County Memorial Hospital and Bryn Mawr Hospital, left her Newtown Square private practice in 2003 • Ob/Gyn Carolyn Costanzi, Bryn Mawr, will leave her four physician practice in June, 2004 when her son graduates from high school to relocate to Maine, causing patients to endure longer waits for appointments and seriously burdening the remaining three physicians who hired Dr. Costanzi in March 2002 because their practice had grown too busy. Associate Joan Zeidman, who believes it will be impossible to attract a replacement to PA, which she states may cause this overburdened group to give up obstetrics completely, notes, “ That’s 750 women per year who will have to squeeze themselves into another already overburdened practice. So you see the downward spiral that one person leaving has set in motion.” • Andrew Crell, DO, has applied for locum tenens work in Salem County, New Jersey beginning Jan. 1, 2002 • Cardiologist Peter DeBatiste, left practice in 2001 • Gynecological Oncologist/Surgeon Randolph Deger left Delaware County for upstate New York, but retained his PA medical license • Ob/Gyn Bob Del Rosario, left PA • Neurosurgeon Hagop Derkorkorian left Delaware County for Delaware, but retained his PA medical license • Internist Beverly Dolberg, Riddle Memorial Hospital, closed her private practice in Media in August, 2003 and has accepted a position at the VA Hospital in Coatesville, PA • Vascular Surgeon Orville Domingo, Fitzgerald Mercy Hospital, has taken a leave of absence until he can afford insurance • Family Practitioner Theodore D'Orazio, Prime Health Network, retired early in 2002 due to the malpractice situation • Rheumatologist Bonnie Dornworth, retired early • Ob/Gyn Stephen Emanual, of Marple Township, Lankenau and Wynnewood Hospitals, who previously gave up OB to reduce malpractice premiums, was forced to retire on May 30, 2002 after receiving an additional, unexpected malpractice increase which the practice could not afford to pay. He’d been in practice for 35 years. • General Surgeon William Erb, Jr. retired prematurely in August 2001, but retained his PA medical license • Plastic Surgeon Harry Fallack, King of Prussia, fed up with litigation and malpractice premiums left practice to form a new start-up cosmetic company • Family Practitioner Mia Finkelston, Haverford, relocated to Maryland in July, 2002 • Cardiothoracic Surgeon James Finnegan, Crozer-Chester Medical Center, closed his practice and moved to New Jersey, but has retained his PA medical license DELETE DELETE DELETE - count in Chester Co. • ENT Steven Fisher no longer performs surgery • General Surgeon Will Gerhard retired prematurely from Delaware County, but retained his PA medical license • Internist Quentin Giorgio is leaving practice in 2003 to join a pharmaceutical firm • Ob/Gyn Jerome Goldstein eliminated surgery and obstetrics from his Delaware County practice • Radiologist Bill Green, Chief of Radiology at Crozer Chester Medical Center, is resigning in 2003 • Brenda Haines, MD, moved to North Jersey • Gastroenterologist Robert Hally, Delaware County Memorial and Fitzgerald Mercy, moved to Virginia Jan. 15, 2002 • Ob/Gyn Christina Hammill, Bryn Mawr/Paoli, moved to Annapolis, Maryland • Anesthesiologist Mark Hammill, Bryn Mawr, moved to Annapolis, Maryland • General Surgeon Scott Harrod, Crozer and Riddle Memorial Hospitals, moved to rural Illinois in November 2001 but retained his PA medical license • Ob/Gyn Tom Hartchuck, left PA • Gastroenterologist Anibal Herrara, Fitzgerald Mercy, retired early on Jan. 1, 2001 • Orthopedic Surgeon Alan Hibberd, Fitzgerald Mercy, a member of Premiere Orthopedics, left for San Antonio, Texas in April, 2002. • Internist Stephen Hoey, Riddle Memorial Hospital, moved to New Jersey • Internist Anthony Iaccarion left practice to work in prison health • Internist Dennis Iaccarion left practice to work in prison health • ENT Philip Johnson no longer performs surgery • Internist Brian Jorgenson moved to Arizona • Pediatrician Jamie Katz has given up practice in her 30’s • Endocrinologist Nicki Kelaporis, Fitzgerald Mercy, is now practicing in Lancaster • ENT Mark Kelly, Drexel Hill Chester County Hospital/Delaware County Hospital, moved to New Hampshire in August, 2001 • Neurologist Stephen Kiel, Delaware County Memorial Hospital, will relocate to Florida in November 2003 • Neurologist Dr. King, at Penn (Radnor) moved to California • Ob/Gyn James Kiyak, Fitzgerald Mercy Hospital, moved to Wisconsin in August, 2002 after being in the same practice for 14 years • Orthopedic Surgeon Don Kovalsky, Premier Orthopedics, left practice November 1, 2001 and commutes to Illinois Monday - Thursday • Anesthesiologist Andrew Krell, Delaware County Memorial Hospital will relocate to Delaware in May 2004 • Family Practitioner Joseph LaBriciossa, Springfield, left to practice in Delaware in August, 2002 • Oncologist Robert Levy, Mercy Fitzgerald Hospital, moved to Connecticut • Internist Madeline Long, Broomall and Bryn Mawr, retired early December 2001 • Radiologist Russ Love, Main Line Health, is moving his practice to New Jersey in 2003 • Dermatologist Dolores Lucas, Springfield and West Grove, moved to Tennessee Jan. 1, 2002 • Gastroenterologist Mike Lucey, moved to Wisconsin April, 2001 • Plastic and Hand Surgeon Ellen Mahoney, Havertown, relocated to Connecticut in 2003 • Main Line Health Systems reports that 19 of its 52 Ob/Gyn staff members stopped delivering babies in the past two years • ENT Douglas Mann is relocating to Cape Cod, MA after 20 years of practice in Delaware and Montgomery Counties along with his wife, an opthalmologist • Ob/Gyn Joilyn S. Martin, Riddle Memorial, moved to Fairfax, VA in May, 2001 • Rheumatologist Martina Martin, Bryn Mawr, left PA • General Surgeon Robert McGarrigle, Springfield Hospital, is leaving PA • Internist Bernadette Meade, DO, Drexel Hill, left for Boston, MA on March 1, 2002 • Orthopedic Surgeon Larry Miller, Lankenau, closed his office to work at Cooper Hospital in Camden, NJ Sept. 1, 2002 • Oncologist/Hematologist Keith Mills, Drexel Hill, left March 1, 2002 • Primary Care Specialist Richard Morris, Chester, relocated to Delaware in 2003 • Ob/Gyn Dr. Neff moved to Ohio • ENT Surgeon Robert C. O’Reilly, Fitzgerald Mercy Hospital, is moving to practice at A.I. Dupont in Delaware in July, 2002 • Internist Michael Peimer, Ridley Park, relocated to Maryland in July 2003 • Cardiologist Joseph Poku, Riddle Memorial Hospital, relocated to Atlanta, Georgia in July, 2003 • Family Practitioner Maria Pharr moved to Kingston, NC in 2002 • Vascular Surgeon Tarkten Pharr moved to Kingston, NC in 2002 • Premiere Orthopedics and Sports Medicine, a 16 physician orthopedic group which covers eight area hospitals, including Crozer Chester Medical Center, Springfield Hospital, Delaware County Memorial Hospital and Taylor Hospital, was forced to stop operating in January until they obtained stopgap coverage, and may be forced to stop operating again when coverage runs out • Urologist Paul Reheis, Fitzgerald Mercy solo practitioner will move to Connecticut in October 2002 • Internist Sue Ricciardi was forced to leave in 2003 after 13 years of practice in Delaware and Chester Counties • Neurosurgeon Howard Richter (see Philadelphia County) • Oncologist Robert Rotche, Mercy Fitzgerald Hospital, moved to North Carolina • Hematologist/Oncologist Bob Roche, moved to Virginia • Pediatrician Dr. Rodzvilla left clinical practice and went into research • General Surgeon Ned Russell retired prematurely from his Delaware County practice, but retained his PA medical license • Neurologist Joel Rutenberg, solo at Delaware County Memorial Hospital, moved to Dover, Delaware in October, 2002, citing cost of liability insurance and poor reimbursement for his decision • Family Practitioner Charles Sanbe, Aston, retired early on Jan. 1, 2001 • Internist Linda Scarazinni, Drexel Hill, left to work for a pharmaceutical company • Internist Mary Schubert, left Penn practice to work for Merck Pharmaceuticals • Thoracic Surgeon Robb Seto , Crozer, Riddle, Taylor and Presbyterian Hospitals, closed his practice in 2004 because he could not pay his malpractice premium • Ob/Gyn Ranjan R. Shah, Riddle, dropped OB Jan 1, 2002 • Anesthesiologist Archanna Sharma, Crozer Chester Medical Center, left to practice in Illinois after only seven months in PA • Cardiologist Dick Schott resigned as medical director for two retirement communities due to high risk and low reimbursement • General Surgeon Barbara Shotwell retired prematurely at the age of 38 but retained her PA medical license • Cardiologist John Shuck, Lankenau, moved to Delaware in July, 2002 • Vascular Surgeon Christopher Smith left Delaware County for Boston, but retained his PA medical license • Pediatrician Ross Smith, Drexel Hill, left practice in 2000 to work in pharmaceuticals • Nephrologist Hardy Sorkin has retired • Neurosurgeon Michael Stanley, Crozer Chester Medical Center and Riddle Memorial Hospital, is leaving PA in 2003, leaving only two members of their four member group to cover both hospitals • Ob/Gyn Gailyn Thomas, moved to Vermont in October, 2000 • Ob/Gyn Eleanor Tiongson, Delaware County Memorial Hospital, stopped delivering babies on Jan. 1, 2003 • Ob/Gyn Marc Toglia stopped delivering babies Sepember 1, 2003, at the age of 40 and limited his practice in Delaware County to gynecology only • Ob/Gyn Vincent Vaccaro, Lankenau, left PA in 2000 due to malpractice costs • Orthopedic Surgeon Bruce Vanett, moved to Seaford, Del. in February 2002 • Ob/Gyn Greg Van Gundy, Lankenau, moved to Maine in December 2001 • Family Practitioner Ira Weiner, Media, closed practice in June, 2002, to work at Physical Rehab Center in Broomall • Cardiologist Rodger Weiner, Ridley Park Hospital, left Delaware County for Mississippi but retained his PA medical license • Cardiothoracic/Vascular Surgeon Joseph Whitlark, Drexel Hill, moved to Kingston, North Carolina, August 2001 • Gastroenterologist Victor Whitten, Riddle Memorial, left August, 2000 • Ob/Gyn Patricia Williams, of Bryn Mawr/King of Prussia, accepted a position with a large pharmaceutical company • Cardiothoracic Surgeon David Zeltzman, Delaware County Memorial Hospital, is relocating out of Pennsylvania in 2003 • Internist Mark Zibelman, Ridley Park Hospital, sold his private practice to Crozer Keystone in 2003 and is now working part-time • Internist John Zimmerman moved to Roanoke, VA in April, 2003 Hospital and Other Effects: • Crozer Keystone Health System (which operates four hospitals) reports that it spends more money on liability insurance than medicine last year • Crozer Keystone Health Systems closed transitional care units at Crozer Chester Medical Center, Taylor Hospital, Delaware County Memorial Hospital, Springfield Hospital, and Community Hospital in Chester in 2002, due in part to rising liability insurance costs. Other cost-saving measures will include a hiring freeze, overtime limits in order to “minimize the number of individuals affected by these changes,“ according to a statement released to the press by Crozer spokesperson Kathy Scullin. • Crozer Keystone Health Systems is “reorganizing” EMT services at several facilities, including possible closing of Tinicum, Taylor Tansport Unit and a Delaware County Memorial Transport Unit, due in part to rising liability insurance costs • Delaware County Memorial Hospital has lost one third of its operating staff • Main Line Health Systems reports a malpractice premium increase of $2 million in 2002 • Main Line Health Systems reported that their liability costs would be $11 million in 2002, an increase of 90% over the past two years, noting that “money that would otherwise go toward hiring and retaining staff, buying new technology and developing and retaining health services and programs” would be used to cover the increase • One member hospital of Main Line Health Systems lost 30% of its Ob/Gyns in the past 18 months • Main Line Health has closed the Medic 92 Advanced Life Support Unit, due in part to higher malpractice costs • Mercy Community Hospital, Havertown, closed impatient services and eliminating 400 jobs, while parent company Mercy Health System cites soaring malpractice premiums as one of the reasons • Mercy Fitzgerald Hospital closed its obstetrics unit on August 1, 2003 due, in part, to unaffordable malpractice premiums • Mercy Fitzgerald Hospital closed its neonatal intensive-care unit and eliminated 150 jobs to offset financial losses, due in part to skyrocketing malpractice premiums which have risen from $7 million to $22 million in the past two years, according to CEO Gavin Kerr. • Mercy Fitzgerald Hospital terminated 23 paramedics covering Haverford, Marple and Newtown Townships on October 23, 2002, according to paramedic services director Larry Gentile, citing rising malpractice premium costs and a decline in reimbursement revenues • Mercy Health System closed the radiology unit at Mercy Community Outpatient Campus, the former Mercy Haverford Hospital in 2002, in order to offset financial losses caused, in part, by increasing malpractice premiums. The system may put the entire facility up for sale, according to CEO Gavin Kerr. • Mercy Health System announced the closure of its 17 bed labor and delivery unit, as well at its 18-bed neonatal intensive care unit in July 2003; hospital officials cited the number of physicians dropping obstetrics and the high cost of medical liability insurance for its $5 million deficit
ELK COUNTY: Physician Effect: • Orthopedic Surgeon Stephen Gick, St. Mary’s Regional Medical Center, relocated to Ochsner Clinic in New Orleans, Louisiana in May, 2002 • Interventional Radiologist Robert Hall, St. Mary’s, working part time in an arrangement which suited both him and the hospital, was forced to switch to locum tenens in 2003 due to changes in coverage, and is no longer reading mammograms due to extremely high liability premiums
ERIE COUNTY: Physician Effect: • Anesthesiologist Vijaya Agarwala left PA • Anesthesiologist Carol Altier left PA • Plastic Surgeon Graeme Baker left PA • Pulmonologist Leo Bennett retired early • Eric Borden, MD, left PA • General Surgeon Barbara Bossert left PA • Internist Steve Bowers gave up private practice and is now an ER doctor at the Erie VA Hospital • Colo-Rectal Surgeon Craig Brown retired early • Internist Geoff Burbridge left PA • General Surgeon Dana Busch left PA • Cardiologist Edward Chiu left PA • Plastic Surgeon Winston Chu moved his Erie-based practice to Westfield, NY on Jan. 2, 2003, and will pay $20,000 per year for better coverage than the $66,000 he would have been forced to pay in PA, which was a 200% increase over his 2002 premium • Pain Specialist Deborah Coates left PA • Ob/Gyn E. Michael Dail stopped delivering babies in Feb. 2003 after delivering 8,400 children, and and subsequently retired • Cardiac Surgeon George D'Angelo retired early • Neurosurgeon Elio DeMeira left PA • Neurosurgeon William Paul Diefenbach relocated to Michigan • Radiologist Karl Doelle left PA • Nephrologist Richard Dreyfus retired early • Neurologist Michael Dumcombe retired early • Urologist Ronald Esper retired early • Orthopedic Surgeon John Euliono, Jr. retired early • Pain Management Specialist Thomas Falasca, closed his clinical practice July 18, 2002 due to financial pressures from soaring liability premiums and lower reimbursements, and will accept a teaching position at the medical school in Erie • Neurosurgeon Mark Flitter relocated to New Mexico • Plastic Surgeon Dudley Giles left PA • Ob/Gyn Craig Glines relocated to Michigan • Physiatrist Abe Goldbaum left PA • Family Practitioner Scott Grindel left PA • ENT Robert Guelcher retired early • Pathologist Rebecca Haverly retired May, 2002 • Radiologist David Howell relocated to Indiana • Family Practitioner Brett Johnson relocated to Texas • Neurosurgeon Moses Jones left PA • Family Practitioner George Kish left PA • Family Practitioner David Klees has been forced to stop delivering babies due to liability premiums; as a result, The Erie Hospital closed its obstetrics department on March 10, 2003 • Physiatrist Vidya Kudva left PA • Orthopedic Surgeon Lawrence Kuklinski retired early • Internist David Lavin left PA • Family Practitioner Patrick Lenz left PA • Internist Mark Levine relocated to Virginia • Internist Steven Levy left clinical practice and is now teaching • Orthopedic Surgeon Keith Lustig left PA • Anesthesiologist John Maydak left PA • Physiatrist Sioban McDermott left PA • Neurosurgeon David McGee retired early • Radiologist Ann McGeehan left PA • Trauma Surgeon Forrest Mischler retired early • Anesthesiologist Lauren Mozdy retired early • Cardiac Surgeon Xavier Moussette left PA • ENT Greg Murray left PA • Dermatologist Vitold T. Narus retired • Family Practitioner Thomas Obenreder retired early • Physiatrist Michael Orinick went to VA Hospital • NeuroRadiologist James Oskin left PA • Family Practitioner Susan Oskin left PA • Cardiologist Mary Anne Papp left PA for Michigan • Pediatrician Joseph Papp will leave PA for Michigan on Feb. 1, 2004 • Geriatrician Kathryn Pica left PA • Physiatrist Chung Park retired early • Family Practitioner Jonathan Park left PA for California • Orthopedist David Parker retired early • Physiatrist Scott Recker left PA • Radiologist Ruben Reyes left PA • Oncologist Virginia Rhoads left PA • Family Practitioner Norman Rudolph retired • Pain Specialist Anthony Russo left PA for Virginia • Ophthalmologist Anthony Sala retired • Pain Specialist Gabriel Samori left PA for Delaware or Maryland • Cardiac Surgeon Prebhaker Sardesai retired early • Radiologist Jerome Scavone left PA • General Surgeon Craig Schwartz left PA • OB/GYN Joseph Semple retired • General Internist Imranullah Shaikh left PA • Dermatologist Patrick Shannon left the area • Oncologic Surgeon Keith Stephenson moved to Virginia in October, 2002 following malpractice increases which required him to work part-time as a trauma surgeon at Hamet Medical Center; he was the only oncologic surgeon in the region • OB/GYN David Steinbrink retired early • General Surgeon Philip Susann retired early • Cardiac Surgeon Wilfredo Tan retired early • Family Practitioner David Thomas left PA • Ob/Gyn James Thomas, Jr., president of the medical staff at Hamot Medical Center retired on Aug. 15, 2002 due to high malpractice rates • Infectious Disease Specialist Lee VanVooris left PA • Endocrinologist Anne-France Walczak left PA • General Surgeon James Warden, St. Vincent Health System, retired early in October 2003 • Family Practitioner Linda Welles left PA • Neurologist Richard Welles left PA • Radiologist Mark Yost left PA • Family Practitioner George Zagger left PA • The closure of Dr. Thomas Falasca’s pain-management clinic leaves only two pain management specialists in Erie County Hospital and Other Effects: • The Erie Hospital was forced to close its Obstetrics Department on March 10, 2003, due to a lack of physicians able to deliver babies • Hamet Medical Center’s malpractice premiums increased from $2 million in 2001 to $6 million in 2002 • MetroHealth Medical/Osteopathic Hospital, a 102 bed facility, closed in 2003 after filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2002, according to CEO Debra Dragavan, citing tripled malpractice premiums, staff salaries and lower reimbursements as reasons for its $15 to $18 million debt
FAYETTE COUNTY: Physician Effect: • Radiologist Peter Gabriel, Uniontown Hospital, retired in 2003 • Ob/Gyn Lawrence J. Glad, Laurel Highlands Ob/Gyn, a three physician group which delivered almost half the babies born in Fayette County at Uniontown Hospital, stopped delivering babies Nov. 1, 2002, following a premium increase from $150,000 to $400,000 for the group. Eliminating obstetrics will lower the group’s premiums to around $100,000 • Orthopedic Surgeon Thomas Jones, one of three physicians with Bone and Joint Surgical Associates, which serves 1,500 patients per year, left PA June 1, 2002 • Orthopedic Surgeon, Philip Spinuzza, one of three physicians with Bone and Joint Surgical Associates, which serves 1,500 patients per year, left PA June 1, 2002 • Ob/Gyn John A. Sunyecz, Laurel Highlands Ob/Gyn, a three physician group which delivered almost half the babies born in Fayette County at Uniontown Hospital, stopped delivering babies Nov. 1, 2002, following a premium increase from $150,000 to $400,000 for the group. Eliminating obstetrics will lower the group’s premiums to around $100,000 • General Surgeon Josef Vanek, Uniontown Hospital, has been activited by the PA National Guard to deploy overseas for several months; he notes "During this time, Uniontown Hospital and Fayette County will be without one of its overworked surgeons and some patients will suffer - having to wait or travel elsewhere for care...our odds of actually getting a new surgeon to this area are, obviously, slim." • Ob/Gyn Christine Wilson, Laurel Highlands Ob/Gyn, a three physician group which delivered almost half the babies born in Fayette County at Uniontown Hospital, stopped delivering babies Nov. 1, 2002, following a premium increase from $150,000 to $400,000 for the group. Eliminating obstetrics will lower the group’s premiums to around $100,000 Hospital and Other Effects: • When Laurel Highlands Ob/Gyn, which formerly delivered about half the babies in Fayette County, stopped delivering babies on Nov. 1, 2002, Uniontown Hospital now has only four remaining obstetricians, all of whom are over 60 years old and expected to retire soon, according to CEO Paul Bacharach. • One of the orthopedic surgeons who left PA for Maryland retained the same malpractice insurance carrier, and saw his PA premium of $80,000 per year drop to $18,000 per year in Maryland • Uniontown Hospital, a rural community hospital, has lost 3 of its 5 orthopedic surgeons, according to Uniontown Hospital CEO Paul Bacharach, and one of the remaining surgeons is in his 70’s
FRANKLIN COUNTY: Physician Effect: • Neurosurgeon Brian Holmes, who had previously moved his practice from Scranton to Hagerstown, MD, with a portion of his practice in Chambersburg, was forced to eliminate his Pennsylvania practice due to new MCARE restrictions and will no longer be able to see any patients in PA • All of the GI Specialists and most of the orthopedic surgeons who serve Waynesboro Hospital were forced to leave the state and are now working in Maryland, according to President of Summit Health Norman B. Epstein, who further noted that 'the scarcity of some specialists has resulted in patients waiting weeks for appointments." Hospital and Other Effects: • Chambersburg Hospital’s maternity clinic for low income and uninsured women closed due to soaring malpractice rates
FULTON COUNTY: Physician Effect: • Ob/Gyn Ron Koval stopped practicing when the Fulton County Medical Center closed its maternity department late in 2000
HUNTINGTON COUNTY: Physician Effect: • An Obstetrician in Huntington County has cut his PA practice in half to work part-time in another state in 2003 • A General Surgeon left Huntington County in the summer of 2003 • Orthopedic Surgeon Fred Jones, J.C. Blair Hospital, left Huntington County in the summer of 2003 • ER Specialist George Thorpe returned to school for training in statistics and is currently working for a pharmaceutical company • A Radiologist left Huntington County in the summer of 2003 • Only one orthopedic surgeon is available for trauma call in all of Huntington County
INDIANA COUNTY: Physician Effect: • Family Practitioner Rick Bakley left the state in 2003 • Orthopedic Surgeon Paul Burton, president of the Pennsylvania Orthopedic Society, left Pennsylvania in 2003; he was the third president of the POS to leave the state during his term • Family Practitioner Michael Cash left the state in 2003 • Neurologist Johnnie Hinton left the state in 2003 • ENT David Hughes left the state in 2003 • ENT Minna Karanja left the state in 2003 • General Surgeon Terence Kryzinski left the state in 2003 • Cardiologist Adrienne Schoueeoff left the state in 2003 • Anesthesiologist Satosva Setty left the state in 2003 • Eight general surgeons left Indiana Regional Medical Center in 2003, departing “to work in other states with lower premiums,” according to General Surgeon Mark Boykiw, one of only two remaining surgeons, giving testimony to area legislators as reported by the Pittsburgh Tribune Review
LACKAWANNA COUNTY: Physician Effect: • Colon Rectal Surgeon William Auriemma, Colorectal Center of NEPA, Inc, was forced to withdraw services from three facilities for one month in 2002 due to the medical liability crisis • General Surgeon Charles Bannon, Delta Medix, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • Colon Rectal Surgeon Joseph Bannon, Delta Medix, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • Urologist Ronald Barrett, Delta Medix, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • Vascular Surgeon Edward Batzel, Clarks Summit, is restricting his practice to non-invasive therapy to reduce liability premiums (CHANGECHANGECHANGE) • Ob/Gyn Richard Behlke, Ob-Gyn Consultants, Scranton, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • Ob/Gyn Daniel Berger, Scranton, moved to New Jersey in 2003 • ER Specialist Dr. Stephen Brunetti, Community Medical Center, of Emergency Services, PC, was forced to seek assistance from the hospital to pay malpractice premiums after noting increases from $90,000 only three years ago, to $700,000 on Oct. 1, 2002 by the JUA and unavailable through any other company. The physicians were obligated to work out an arrangement with the hospital to help cover their liability premiums • Urologist Dr. Cassone, Mid-Valley Hospital, Peckville, closed his practice in 2002; he was the only urologist on staff at Mid-Valley Hospital • Orthopedic Surgeon Joseph Cesare, Scranton Orthopaedic Specialists, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • Orthopedic Surgeon Joseph Cronkey was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • Ob/Gyn Harold Davis, Ob-Gyn Consultants, Scranton, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • Family Practitioner/OB Neal Davis, Moses Taylor and Mercy Marian Community Hospital in Carbondale, has been forced to stop delivering babies • Pain Management Specialist Debra DeAngelo, Pain Management Specialists, closed the practice on Jan. 31, 2003 and they will become an employed physician at PSU Milton Hershey Medical Center. The clinic was the only comprehensive pain management clinic in Lackawanna County • Pain Management Specialist Nicholas DeAngelo, Pain Management Specialists, closed the practice on Jan. 31, 2003 and will become an employed physician at PSU Milton Hershey Medical Center. The clinic was the only comprehensive pain management clinic in Lackawanna County • Ob/Gyn Raymond DeCesare II, Ob-Gyn Consultants, Scranton, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • Primary Care Specialist Peter Decker, Wilkes-Barre, died in a tragic accident in November 2003; colleagues note that he had thousands of patients in his practice and that there is little chance of replacing him. One notes: "Other good primary care physicians are very busy, patients don't know where to turn and there are large problems recruiting new physicians to NE Pennsylvania." • Delta Medix, the largest surgical group in Lackawanna County, has been forced to cease providing general surgical coverage at Community Medical Center due to the recent departure of a surgeon and the inability to continue to provide surgical care at five hospitals • Orthopedic Surgeon John Doherty, Jr., of Professional Orthopedic Associates, practicing at Mercy Hospital, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice • Neurologist Vithal Dhaduk, Dunmore, saw his malpractice premium jump more than 500% lin 2002 following filing of a malpractice suit which he describes as unfounded and a nuisance, raising his premiums to $59,000 for this year, with a projected increase to $76,000 next year after the latest round of approved increases takes effect. The Scranton Times quotes Dr. Dhaduk: “If it keeps going like this, I’m going to have to leave. It’s impossible.” • Ob/Gyn Herman Gary, Community Medical Center, has left practice • Orthopedic Surgeon J. Robert Gavin, of Professional Orthopedic Associates, practicing at Mercy Hospital was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • Orthopedic Surgeon Chad Ghigiarelli, Scranton Orthopaedic Specialists, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • Urologist Jerald Gilbert, Delta Medix, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • Orthopedic Surgeon Alan Gillick, Scranton Orthopaedic Specialists, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • Rheumatologist Eugene Grady, Scranton Orthopaedic was forced to curtail services in December as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • Orthopedic Surgeon Shawn Hennigan, Scranton Orthopaedic Specialists, left PA for Green Bay, Wisconsin in July 2003 • Orthopedic Surgeon Jack Henzes, Scranton Orthopaedic Specialists, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • Neurosurgeon Brian Holmes moved to Hagerstown, MD, where his annual premium has dropped to about $14,000; he notes that “each week, I evaluate or perform surgery on patients who drive almost 200 miles from Northeastern PA to my practice based in Maryland.” • Rheumatologist Matthew Hunter, of Professional Orthopedic Associates, practicing at Mercy Hospital, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums. • General Surgeon Kristine Kelley, Delta Medix, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums. • Urologist Ira Kohn, Delta Medix, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums. • Pulmonologist Joseph Koval, Scranton, has "decided to leave the practice of medicine. I will be closing my office practice effective June 30, 2004," according to a letter sent to colleagues • General/Vascular Surgeon Vincent Larkin, working part-time for health reasons, retired early because of high premiums for even part-time surgery in 2002 • Orthopedic Surgeon Edwin Malloy was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • General/Vascular Surgeon John McGurrin left practice in Scranton to begin a radiology residency at Hershey Medical Center in July 2003 • Vascular Surgeon Mark McGurrin, Clarks Summit, relocated to Syracuse Dec. 31, 2003 • Orthopedic Surgeon P. Christopher Metzger, Scranton Orthopaedic Specialists, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • ENT Michael Olenginski, Community Medical Center, has ceased doing major head and neck surgery; he was also forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • General Surgeon David Onofrey, Delta Medix, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums. • General and Bariatric Surgeon William Peters, Peckville, plans to end his practice in December 2002, when his liability premium is expected to triple to over $100,000, and move out of PA • Urologist Donald Preate, Sr., Delta Medix, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums. • Urologist Donald Preate, Jr., Delta Medix, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • ER Specialist Vincent Pollino, Community Medical Center, of Emergency Services, PCwas forced to accept hospital assistance in affording the group’s malpractice premiums which went from $90,000 only three years ago, to $700,000 on Oct. 1, 2002 from the JUA and unavailable through any other company. The departure of this group of ER physicians could force the closing of CMC’s Trauma Center and ER • Ob/Gyn Marc H. Rabin, Ob-Gyn Consultants, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • Ob/Gyn Gary Reedy, Ob-Gyn Consultants, Scranton, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • Orthopedic Surgeon John T. Rich, Scranton Orthopaedic Specialists, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • General Surgeon James Roche, Delta Medix, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • Ob/Gyn Charles Rogalla, Community Medical Center, left PA • Neurosurgeon Robert Sarnowski, Community Medical Center, stopped performing surgery in 2002 and has limited his practice to consulting and assisting, following receipt of a premium exceeding $60,000 • Cardiologist Jay Schechter, Mercy Hospital, relocated to Arizona March 2004 due to a premium increase of 401%, leaving his nine-physician group with a serious overage problem; the group has tried unsuccessfully to recruit additional physicians for two years • Orthopedic Surgeon Harry Schmaltz, Scranton Orthopedic Specialists, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • Podiatrist Timothy Siebecker, Scranton Orthopaedic Specialists, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • ENT Eugene Stec, Community Medical Center, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • Urologist James Stefanelli, Delta Medix, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums. • Orthopedic Surgeon Carl Steindel was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • General Surgeon Michael Stewart, Chairman of the Departument of Surgery at Moses Taylor Hospital, Delta Medix, relocated to Colorado in 2003 • General/Vascular Surgeon Michael Sunday, was forced to curtail services in December due to skyrocketing medical liability premiums • Neurosurgeon Carson Thompson relocated to Colorado on Dec. 31, 2003 - the day his malpractice insurance policy expired • Ob/Gyn Andrea Tomassoni, Ob-Gyn Consultants, Scranton, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • Orthopedic Surgeon Theodore Tomaszewski, of Professional Orthopedic Associates, practicing at Mercy Hospital, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums. Previously the group had stopped operating at Community Medical Center to reduce premiums. • General Surgeon Fred Toy, who had originally planned to leave PA in 2002 due to non-renewal of insurance has obtained coverage for six months pending legislative action • Anesthesiologist Eric Tweedie, Wilkes-Barre General, moved to Alabama in 2003 • Ob/Gyn Theodore Uroskie, Community Medical Center, left PA • Ob/Gyn Samuel Ventura, Blakely, retired early on June 15, 2003 due to malpractice insurance premiums • Urologist Jeffrey P. Weiss, Delta Medix, was forced to curtail services in December as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums. • Ob/Gyn Amy Yavorek, Ob-Gyn Consultants, left PA to practice in New York near West Point, following a 300% increase in malpractice premiums in February, 2002. Dr. Yavorek, 41 years old, is a Lackawanna County native with strong ties to her home and is extremely distressed at being forced to leave. • Only two neurosurgeons continue to operate in Lackawanna County; one does only spinal surgery • The Ob/Gyn specialist to whom the Lupus Foundation referred their high risk patients has stopped doing OB • Three of five trained vascular surgeons in the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton area have left, according to Dr. William Host, President of Wyoming Valley Health Care System, and the remaining two will most likely close their practice on Dec. 31, 2002 • In 1996, there were 31 general/vascular surgeons in Lackawanna County; in 2003, there are 17 - covering five hospitals, and of that 17, four are over the age of 60 Hospital and Other Effects: • Community Medical Center has been unable to attract a new orthopedic spine surgeon to Northeastern Pennsylvania, according to Orthopedic Surgeon Harry Schmaltz • Nine of 12 orthopedic surgeons no longer take trauma call in Scranton • Ten ER physicians at Community Medical Center, Scranton, were forced to turn to the hospital for assistance in covering increased liability premiums after losing their insurance • In Scranton, 12 surgeons have retired or died in the past five years and none have been recruited to take their place, according to a CNN interview with Dr. Charles Bannon
LANCASTER COUNTY: Physician Effect: • Orthopedic Surgeon Vincent Avallone, Jr. eliminated spinal surgery in 2003 • Neurosurgeon V. Ward Barr, Lancaster General, was forced to take early retirement • Anesthesiologist and Pain Management Specialist Joe Bui, Community Anesthesia Associates of Lancaster, relocated to California on August 13, 2003 • Ob/Gyn Sharon Conslato, Ob/Gyn Associates of Lancaster, is no longer practicing in Lancaster • Orthopedic Surgeon Donald Diverio, Jr. eliminated spinal surgery Jan. 1, 2004 • Ob/Gyn Lawrence France, Ob/Gyn of Lancaster, retired in 2003, due in part to medical liability premiums • General Surgeon Charles Heisterkamp has retired early to escape the adverse malpractice climate • Family Practitioner Ayesha Jafri, Lancaster General Hospital, who practiced with Twin Rose Family Practice in Columbia, relocated to Maryland in 2003; she was to have been president of the Lancaster County Medical Society this year • Ob/Gyn Christina Larson, Lancaster General Hospital and Women and Babies Hospitals, an associate of Ob-Gyn of Lancaster, relocated to Minnesota in September 2003 "due to the medical malpractice crisis in Pennsylvania," according to an ad in the Lancaster Intelligencer Journal • Ob/Gyn Stanley Prince, Ephrata Community Hospital, closed his 16-year old practice on Jan. 1, 2003, leaving some 1,800 women looking elsewhere for care, after his medical malpractice insurance rose from $80,000 last year to $114,000 in 2003 • Surgeon Dyeanne Racette is leaving Lancaster for Vermont due to liability premiums • Plastic Surgeon Steven Schmidt, Lancaster General Hospital, stopped practice Dec. 31, 2003 and will relocate to Wisconsin July 1, 2004 • Family Practitioner Barry Walp, Lancaster, will retire on Dec. 31, 2003, the day before his liability premium is slated to increase by 400% • Ob/Gyn Ernest Wood was forced to retire early in 2003 after 30 years in practice • ENT Joseph Zaepfel has announced that he is retiring in 2004 Hospital and Other Effects: • The Susquehanna Division of Lancaster General Hospital in Columbia closed emergency and in-patient services July 1, 2003, largely because of increasing costs, including liability premiums, according to CEO Michael A. Young, who further noted that premiums had increased at the 62-bed, 100 year old facility from $85,000 several years ago to $900,000 in 2003 and increased 500% in the past three years • Lancaster General Hospital has been forced to delay the construction of a proposed million dollar clinic downtown in part because of insurance rate increases, according to CEO Michael A. Young • Lancaster General Health Systems malpractice premiums increased from $2.3 million in 2001 to $5.3 million in 2002, to $9 million when it renewed coverage April 1, 2002 • WellSpan Health System, although self-insured, had total malpractice costs of $6.3 million in 2002
LAWRENCE COUNTY: Physician Effect: • Orthopedic Surgeon Lawrence Bill left PA in 2003 • Urologist Dr. Kosdrosky left PA in 2003 • General Surgeon David Snyder left PA in 2003 Hospital and Other Effects: • Ellwood City Hospital reported in 2003 that it was forced to close oncology services • Jameson Hospital reports that 10 physicians relocated in 2002 and 2003 • Jameson Hospital reports that 7 physicians retired in 2002 and 2003 • Jameson Hospital reports that 22 physicians left for other reasons in 2002 and 2003
LEBANON COUNTY: Physician Effect: • The Family and Community Medicine Residency Program at Penn State University/Good Samaritan Hospital, Lebanon, PA, reports that all six 2002 graduates are leaving PA to practice, while in 2001 only one of six graduates remained in the state, according to Program Director Edward Paul, MD, who further reported that the institution was having difficulty filling residency positions for 2003 • Primary Care Specialist Charles Gnau, owner and director of Lebanon Urgent Medical Center, closed his practice on June 27, 2003, due in part to the high cost of liability insurance, leaving 45,000 "open charts" and letting three staff members go - Dr. Gnau claims to never have been sued, according to the Labanon Daily News
Hospital and Other Effects: • Good Samaritan Hospital, Lebanon, was forced to join a coalition of community hospitals in 2002 to obtain coverage, but will likely face an 80% premium increase anyway, according to VP of Finance Bob Richards • Lebanon Urgent Medical Center was forced to close on June 27, 2003, leaving 45,000 "open charts," according to the Labanon Daily News
LEHIGH COUNTY: Physician Effect: • Allen Neurosurgical, a three neurosurgeon group including Drs. George Chovanes and Robert Morrow, sold its practice to St. Luke’s Hospital in 2003 in order to be able to maintain insurance coverage • Gynecologic Oncologist Weldon Chafe, Lehigh Valley Hospital, accepted a position as department chair at a medical school in Virginia in 2003; thus far, he has not been replaced • Cardiologist/Electrophysiologist Luis Constantin, Lehigh Valley Hospital, relocated to New Mexico in 2003 • Pediatrician Laurie Cohen, Children’s Health Care, stopped attending deliveries in 2003 to reduce malpractice risk • Endocrinologist Bob Doll stopped accepting new diabetes patients • Neurosurgeon Zev Elias left private practice in Allentown in 2002 to take a position at Geisinger Medical Center—he has since left Geisinger as well in 2003 • Family Practitioner Cromwell Estrada and two associates were forced to sell their private practice to St. Luke’s Hospital in 2003 because of rising liability premiums • Ob/Gyn Gayllyn Faust-Rakos was forced to sell her private practice to St. Luke’s Hospital in 2003 in order to be able to afford to continue obstetric care • Pediatric Cardiologist Louis Hansrote has been unable to attract an additional pediatric cardiologist to the area; consequently, the waiting list for his practice is “unbelievable” • Orthopedic Surgeon Barry Hennessey, St. Luke's Hospital, relocated to Tennessee September 1, 2003 • Pediatrician John P. Hentosh retired May 31, 2002 • Urologist John Jaffe's son will complete a urology residency at Penn in June 2004 and has declined to join his father's busy urology practice at Lehigh Valley Hospital, which has been seeking an associate for several years, due to the liability crisis • Cardiologist John Kristofich has left PA • Pediatrician Anna Linderman, Children’s Health Care, stopped attending deliveries in 2003 to reduce malpractice risk • Urologist Franklin Margolis left practice at St. Luke's, Allentown in 2003 due to a threatened liability increase, and now practices only in New Jersey • Neurosurgeon Robert Marcincin, Lehigh Valley Hospital - Muhlenberg, is eliminating surgery in 2003 and will maintain only an office-based practice • Ob/Gyn Gene Miller was forced to sell his private practice to St. Luke’s Hospital in 2003 in order to be able to afford to continue obstetric care • Neurosurgeon Robert Morrow announced that his group, Allen Neurosurgical, has lost three of five doctors and was forced to lay off three employees in their office, following a 47% malpractice premium increase in 2001 and 62% increase in 2002, bringing his annual premium to over $100,000 • Plastic Surgeon Robert Murphy, Lehigh Valley Hospital Center, has stopped doing complex extremity and wrist reconstruction • Internist John Paulus, Lehigh Valley Hospital, retired early • Family Practitioner Gary Pryblick and two associates were forced to sell their private practice to St. Luke’s Hospital in 2003 because of rising liability premiums • Family Practitioner Judy Pryblick and two associates were forced to sell their private practice to St. Luke’s Hospital in 2003 because of rising liability premiums • Internist Russell Rentler was forced to sell his 13-year-old private practice serving Macungie, Allentown and Wescosville following a 100% premium increase and 14-15% Medicare decrease in 2002; he now works only in nursing homes and medical education • Family Practitioner Tim Schmeltzle closed his practicein Emmaus due to the high cost of liability insurance at the end of 2003; he previously worked three jobs to keep his practice open • Ob/Gyn Carolyn Scott stopped delivering babies in May, 2002 and reduced her malpractice premiums by half • Pediatric Allergist Mary Shields retired early in 2003 • Ob/Gyn Craig Sobelewski, Lehigh Valley Hospital, accepted a position at Duke University Hospital in North Carolina in 2003 • Internist Harvey Starr plans on leaving PA • Pediatrician Rima Strassman, Children’s Health Care, stopped attending deliveries in 2003 to reduce malpractice risk • Ob/Gyn John Stevens, Jr. was forced to sell his private practice to St. Luke’s Hospital in 2003 in order to be able to afford to continue obstetric care • Orthopedic Surgeon David Sussman, Lehigh Valley Hospital, decided to stop practicing medicine in 2004 following an illness due to "being a possible target of liability litigation." • Pediatrician Ken Toff, Children’s Health Care, stopped attending deliveries in 2003 to reduce malpractice risk • Pediatric Allergist Kathleen Ververelli left clinical medicine in 2003 and her associates have been unable to recruit a replacement for her, leaving only one pediatric allergist in the area • Ob/Gyn Andrea Waxman stopped delivering babies in May, 2002 and reduced her malpractice premiums by half • Laparoscopic Urologist Carson Wong, Lehigh Valley Hospital, relocated to Oklahoma in July, 2003; while his departure wasn't necessarily a result of the liability crisis, his associates have been unable to replace him • Interventional Electrophysiologist Steven Zelenkofske, Lehigh Valley Hospital, left practice to go into pharmaceutical research in 2003 Hospital and Other Effects: • Sacred Heart Hospital lost money in 2001, according to the PA Health Care Cost Containment Council, due in part to increased malpractice premiums
LUZERNE COUNTY: Physician Effect: • General and Thoracic Surgeon Peter Andrews, Jr., Community Surgical Group, Kingston, was forced to stop operating for four months in 2002/03 due to an inability to obtain affordable insurance; because he had several outstanding cases, three of which have since been dropped, his JUA premium would have been $250,000. He has recently (in 2003) obtained insurance for about $110,000 per year and is operating again • Gastroenterologist Joseph Andrews, Wilkes-Barre, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing liability premiums • Family Practitioner Anthony Anzalone quit in 2002 and moved to the southeast US • Ob/Gyn Theresa Baseski, OB-GYN Associates, Kingston, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • Vascular Surgeon Peter Blanc, Wilkes-Barre, closed his practice when his insurance expired Sept. 30, 2002, following notification of an increase from $27,000 to $51,000. • Thoracic Surgeon Louis Blaum, Community Surgical Group, Kingston, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • Family Practitioner Louis Bonita quit in 2002 due to malpractice costs • CardioThoracic Surgeon Walter Boris, Mercy Hospital, is relocating to Deborah Hospital in New Jersey in 2003 • Orthopedic Surgeon Scott Boyle terminated staff privileges at Hazleton General and St. Joseph Hospitals in November 2003 due to overwhelming workload created by the departure of all but two other orthopedic surgeons; he will continue to practice in Bloomsburg. His departure, and that of his associate Brett Himmelwright, leaves only one orthopedic surgeon in Hazleton • Infectious Disease Specialist Robert Larry Brown, former chief of infectious diseases at Wyoming Valley Health Care System, retired early in 2003 due to liability premiums; he now has administrative duties for the hospital • Cardio Thoracic Surgeon Nick Cavarrachi, Mercy Hospital, is moving to Ohio in 2003 • ENT Surgeon Peter F. Casterline, Surgical Specialists of Wyoming Valley, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • Ob/Gyn Hiyoung Chung has been forced to eliminate obstetrics • Ob/Gyn Douglas Coslett has been forced to eliminate obstetrics from his busy practice, reducing his malpractice premiums by half • Ob/Gyn Lynne Coslett-Charlton, OB-GYN Associates, Kingston, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • Family Practitioner Monica Cozzone, Wyoming, was forced to move to a smaller office in October, 2002, and has spent most of her savings on liability insurance • Ob/Gyn John DeCaprio closed his 15 year old practice, Wyoming Valley Gyn and Infertility Associates in July, 2002 and moved to New England • Neurologist John Dellarosa is limiting his practice to outpatient services and sleep studies to reduce premiums in 2003 • General/Vascular Surgeon Juan DeRojas, Surgical Specialists of Wyoming Valley, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • General Surgeon Sam DePasquale, Kingston has announced that he will refrain from seeing new patients and performing elective surgery due to liability concerns, noting that his liability insurance was $600 when he began practice in 1970 and expects liability insurance to cost between $50,000 and $75,000 in 2003. • Nephrologist Amit Fadia is relocating to Phoenix, AZ in 2003; his departure leaves the Hazleton, Wilkes-Barre and Berwick areas with only three nephrologists • Ob/Gyn Michael Ferraro, OB-GYN Associates, Kingston, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • Orthopedic Surgeon Peter Feinstein has given up back surgery and limited practice to lower risk procedures and reports that his father-in-law, a local Ob/Gyn, has stopped delivering babies • Ob/Gyn Martin Freifeld is leaving his Luzerne County practice after 20 years • Ob/Gyn John W. Frye, OB-GYN Associates, Kingston, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • Family Practitioner Nick Giordano retired from private practice in 2003 and will be working only in nursing homes • Radiologist Baskar Golla is leaving PA in 2003 • Greater Hazleton Health Alliance reports that, in addition to those listed separately on this list, the loss of one additional orthopedic surgeon from the area, the curtailment of another orthopedic surgeon’s practice to only low-risk procedures, and the elimination of obstetrics by an Ob/Gyn “of longstanding and high regard in our community,” according to CEO Bernard Rudegeair in testimony to the House Majority Polity Committee 3/24/03 • Neurosurgeon Paul Gutterman, the only neurosurgeon in Hazleton, retired from active practice in 2001 when his malpractice premium became greater than his practice’s profits • Orthopedic Surgeon Brett Himmelwright who previously terminated staff privileges at Hazleton General and St. Joseph Hospitals in November 2003 due to overwhelming workload created by the departure of all but two other orthopedic surgeons; and continued to practice in Bloomsburg, relocated to New York state in 2004. His departure, and that of his associate leaves only one orthopedic surgeon in Hazleton • Ob/Gyn Eugene Kaczorowski, Nesbitt Memorial, Kingston was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • Family Practitioner Patrick Kerrigan, Wilkes-Barre, will no longer be able to perform blood work due to the cancellation of his workers compensation coverage for “risk” factors which he says is an offshoot of the liability crisis • Ob/Gyn H.B. Kim, Mercy Hospital, is no longer accepting new patients, citing outrageous liability costs for the decision, following 25 years and nearly 5,000 deliveries • Orthopedic Surgeon John Lease, Hazleton General/St. Joseph Hospitals, resigned privileges in 2004 as he has given up hospital orthopedics, and has applied for employment at the Wilkes-Barre VA Hospital • Ob/Gyn Ki Bum Lee, Hazleton, stopped delivering babies in 2003 • Family Practitioner Nancy Lovelace moved to Virginia in 2001 • Orthopedic Surgeon Daniel Lovrinic retired from private practice due to 100% premium increase and is now practicing at the Wilkes-Barre VA Hosp. • Colon Rectal Surgeon Dave Lucchino was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • Vascular Surgeon Brian Marien, Community Surgical Group, Kingston, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • Family Practitioner William McGuire moved to New York in 2001 • Nephrologist Saul Mendolsohn, Mercy and Wyoming Valley Hospitals, retired Nov. 1, 2002 • Neurosurgeon Benjamin Nakkache, Kingston, was forced to stop doing surgery at Mercy Hospital or other Luzerne County Hospitals for the first half of 2003 due to an inability to obtain affordable insurance; he obtained a policy in August 2003 and is operating again; he was forced to sell his cars to pay the tail on his previous policy, according to an area general surgeon. • Internist David Owens, General and Mercy Hospitals, relocated to Florida in 2003 due to high premiums • Internist Glenn Panzer had previously closed his private practice due to liability premiums and was practicing solely in nursing homes, but has now decided to move to California • Orthopedic Surgeon Michael Patney, Hazleton, husband of Ob/Gyn Dr. Pellegrino, closed his practice in Feb., 2003 due to “astronomical” malpractice premiums; he is as yet uncertain where he is going • General/Thoracic Surgeon Douglas Paull, Surgical Specialists of Wyoming Valley, relocated to Ohio in 2003 • Ob/Gyn Fiorina Pellegrino, Hazleton, wife of orthopedic surgeon Michael Patney, left PA in February 2003 due to the “astronomical” cost of her husband’s malpractice premiums, but notes that her own coverage isn’t much more affordable; as yet, she is uncertain where they are going • Orthopedic Surgeon Mark Perlmutter no longer operates at Hazleton State and St. Joseph Hospitals • Colon Rectal Surgeon Barry Pernikoff, Surgical Specialists of Wyoming Valley, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • General and Vascular Surgeon Sam Piccone moved to Wisconsin in February 2002 to take advantage of a better opportunity which could not be matched in PA due, in part, to liability costs • Orthopedic Surgeon Frank Polidora, Hazleton General and St. Joseph Hospitals, stopped practicing at the hospitals January 1, 2003, although he continues to practice in the area,and was not able to be replaced • Surgeon Shishir Prasad retired early on Jan. 1, 2003 as a result of escalating liability premiums • General Surgeon Jay Redan, Lackawanna and Luzerne Counties, is relocating to Orlando, Florida in April 2004 • General Surgeon Joe Ridilla was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • Ob/Gyn Lisa Roberts, Wyoming Valley Gynecologic and Infertility Associates, is moving to North Carolina • Vascular Surgeon Mark Rummel moved to Michigan in July, 2001 • General/Critical Care Surgeon Mark Schiowitz, Wilkes-Barre, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • Neurosurgeon David Sedor, formerly one of three but now the last practicing neurosurgeon at Wilkes-Barre General Hospital, was recently forced to transfer a patient to Geisinger Medical Center in Danville because he could not operate on two people at once, and further notes that the hospital has been trying to hire another neurosurgeon to replace two who left for over a year, “but we cannot get anyone to come here because of the insurance crisis.” Dr. Sedor further notes, “I have no help. I have no back-up. I haven’t slept through a night in a year and three months.” He notes that his patient load has tripled in the past 18 months. • Internist/Rheumatologist Dave Shaller is leaving private practice in 2003 to pursue other interests • Internist and Hem/Onc Specialist Don Shapiro, Wilkes-Barre General Hospital, quit private practice in 2003 and joined the VA Hospital as a hem/onc specialist • Colon Rectal Surgeon Feroz Sheikh, Surgical Specialists of Wyoming Valley, one of only two board-certified colon rectal surgeons in the Wyoming Valley, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • Pulmonologist Henry F. Smith, Jr. can no longer do acute care medicine due to the “hostile” malpractice environment, but will continue his pulmonary practice in area facilities, leaving only three pulmonary/critical care physicians in Wilkes-Barre, down from nine in 1989 • Internist John Tomedi is leaving PA in 2003 • Anesthesiologist Eric Tweedie, Wilkes-Barre General, moved to Alabama in 2003 • Vascular Surgeon Tom Unruh relocated to Delaware in June 2003 • Surgical Oncologist Gary Verazin, Community Surgical Group, Kingston, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • Ob/Gyn Jay Willner, Mercy Hospital, has eliminated obstetrics and limited gynecological procedures • Neurosurgeon Eric Wolfson, Geisinger Wilkes-Barre, is relocating to Biloxi, Mississippi in April 2004, which will leave the hospital without an operating neurosurgeon • General/Vascular Surgeon Chester Yavorski, Surgical Specialists of Wyoming Valley, was forced to curtail services in December 2002 as a result of skyrocketing malpractice premiums • General Surgeon J. Zhitarelli left private practice and went to work at the Wilkes-Barre VA Hospital Hospital and Other Effects: • Greater Hazleton Health Alliance, which operates the former Hazleton State General Hospital and the former Hazleton-St. Joseph Medical Center, has announced layoffs of 25-30 workers in 2002 due, in part, to a premium increase from $510,000 to $1.4 million for the Broad Street Campus and from $500,000 to $2.1 million for the Church Street Campus, according to CEO Bernard Rudegeair, who also noted that the hospitals face a $3 million deficit by year’s end. • Wyoming Valley Health Care System eliminated 52 positions on May 1, 2002, including nurses, accountants, and clerical staff, according to hospital President Dr. William Host. This follows the elimination of 23 managerial positions in April, 2002. These measures are expected to save the hospital $3.5 million, reducing a standing $10 million deficit, due in part to malpractice insurance premium increase, according to Dr. Host
LYCOMING COUNTY: Physician Effect: • Ob/Gyn Susan Haack, Williamsport, is moving to Wisconsin • Plastic Surgeon Richard Schatz left PA in November 2001 due to the liability crisis • Ob/Gyn James Speisinger, Williamsport, is moving to Wisconsin
MCKEAN COUNTY: Physician Effect: • General/Vascular Surgeon Thomas A. Castellenti moved to Largo, Florida • Ob/Gyn Robert Moyer, Bradford Regional Medical Center/Warren General Hospital, moved to Green Bay, Wisconsin, in July, 2002
MIFFLIN COUNTY: Physician Effect: • Longtime Ob/Gyn Ralph Aldinger left PA Hospital and Other Effects: •Lewistown Hospital eliminated 30 positions to save money on Jan. 26, 2002
MONROE COUNTY: Physician Effect: • Internist Vincent Francescangeli stopped taking ER call in 2003 due to liability risk and poor reimbursements, and is no longer able to provide care in local nursing homes for the same reasons • General Surgeon Kurt Hoffman, Pocono Medical Center, moved to Vidalia, GA in 2002 • ENT Tanjeer Janjun moved to Somerville, NJ • Orthopedic Surgeon Jan Kapcala retired • Orthopedic Surgeon Frank Leuecchio, Pocono Medical Center, retired early • Ob/Gyn Karen McColl, Pocono Medical Center, moved to Vidalia, GA in 2002 • Orthopedic Surgeon George Primiano stopped taking ER call at Pocono Medical Center in 2003 because of skyrocketing malpractice costs • Ob/Gyn Sherwood Samet left PA in 2003 • Ob/Gyn Chester Smith stopped doing obstetrics in 2003 • Family Practitioner Pamela Villany moved to Baltimore, MD • Anesthesiologist Steve Villany moved to Baltimore, MD • Ob/Gyn Peter Yaswinski, Pocono Medical Center, gave up OB • An Ob/Gyn at Pocono Medical Center has stopped doing OB; as a result of the three OB’s who’ve stopped delivering babies, there is now a nine month wait to get an appointment with the remaining obstetricians, according to testimony given to the House Majority Policy Committee on March 24, 2003 Hospital and Other Effects: • In 1992, there were 10 orthopedic surgeons taking trauma call at Pocono Medical Center, the only major facility serving the Pocono’s many busy ski areas; now there are only four taking trauma call in 2003 • Pocono Medical Center lost money in 2001, according to the PA Health Care Cost Containment Council, due in part to increased malpractice costs • Pocono Medical Center expected its malpractice premiums to jump from $1.2 million to $3.4 million when its current policy expires in August 2002, according to CEO Eugene LeBlond, who also noted that the insurance crisis has held up approval for the hospital’s strategic plan to meet the growing needs of the county • Pocono Medical Center, serving the Poconos ski areas and seeing over 60,000 ER patients each year, no longer has a neurosurgeon on staff
MONTGOMERY COUNTY: Physician Effect: • Anesthesiologist Jonathan Abrams, United Anesthesia Associates at Lankenau Hospital, relocated to New Jersey in December 2002 • Surgical Oncologist Paul Ahearne, Abington Hospital, moved to Asheville, North Carolina in 2003 • Anesthesiologist Gary Atkinson, United Anesthesia Associates at Lankenau Hospital, accepted a position at Temple in April 2002 at a salary Main Line wasn’t able to match due to insurance premiums • Anesthesiologist Stephani Allison, Abington Hospital, moved to Delaware in 2003 • Radiologist Norbertina Banson, Holy Redeemer Hospital, left PA in 2003 due to malpractice costs • Internist/Nephrologist Robert Benz, Lankenau Hospital, was forced to give up the practice of internal medicine in 2003 and limit practice to nephrology alone in order to be able to afford increased premiums, which would otherwise have doubled • General Surgeon Michelle M. Bertsch, Central Montgomery Medical Center, relocated to New Jersey on July 1, 2002 after only four years practicing in Pennsylvania • Ob/Gyn Andre Blanzaco, Wyndemoor, Chestnut Hill Hospital and Thomas Jefferson Hospitals, retired prematurely • Hospitalist Priti Bhagia, Main line Health System, will relocate to Charlotte, North Carolina in October, 2003. • Ob/Gyn Sherry Blumenthal, Abington Hospital, has stopped delivering babies • Ob/Gyn Nancy Bridgens, Pottstown Memorial Medical Center, will eliminated obstetrics on April 31, 2003 • ENT Matt Bucko, Central Montgomery Medical Center (see Bucks County entry) • Dermatologist Ashley Cavalier, Bryn Mawr and Hahnemann Hospitals, will relocate to Louisville, Kentucky in July 2004 due to the liability crisis in PA • Orthopedic Surgeon Buck Cavalier will relocate to Louisville, Kentucky in July 2004 due to the liability crisis in PA • Ob/Gyn Nick Chapis, Pottstown Memorial Medical Center, was forced to stop delivering babies because his malpractice insurance grew too high • Ob/Gyn Elizabeth Chase, Abington Hospital, a young Ob/Gyn moved her practice to Dover, New Hampshire in 2003 • Opthalmologist Jeffrey Cohen, Abington Hospital, moved to Texas in 2003 • General Surgeon Leonard Cohen, Elkins Park and Einstein Hospitals, moved to AZ in 2003 • Orthopedic Surgeon Martin Cohen, Abington Hospital, moved his suburban Philadelphia practice to the Lehigh Valley in 2003 • Endocrinologist Dominnick Corrigan, Abington Hospital, relocated to Rhode Island in July 2003 • Ob/Gyn Rachel Cramer, Abington Hospital, moved to Concord, MA in 2003 • Ob/Gyn Jan Crean, Abington Hospital, retired in 2003 due to liability insurance costs • ENT J. David Cunningham, Bryn Mawr Hospital, left PA in 2003 • Infectious Disease Specialist Pia DeGirolamo, Grand View Hospital, is retiring at age 44 in 2003 because of excessive liability insurance premiums • Orthopedic Surgeon Carl DePaulo, Lankenau Hospital, Ft. Washington, left PA in 2003 • ENT Stanley Farb, Central Montgomery Medical Center, retired in 2003 • Ob/Gyn Yvonne Figarella, Womencare Ob/Gyn in Willow Grove, on staff at Abington Hospital, left PA for NY in 2002 because her neurosurgeon husband can’t find a job in PA which pays enough for them to pay off their medical school loans. She was offered twice the salary she makes in PA • Anesthesiologist Tom Finkelston (see Bucks County entry) • Cardiologist/Electrophysiologist John Fisher, Lankenau Hospital, has taken a position with a pharmaceutical company • Cardiologist David Flowers, Grandview Hospital, died in 2003, and the hospital expects to have an extremely difficult time replacing him • Pediatrician Jeffrey Fogel, Abington Memorial Hospital, moved to Tampa, Florida in July, 2002, noting the reduced reimbursements and skyrocketing liability premiums were “a no-win situation for...me, my patients and my family.” • Ob/Gyn Leslie Frankel, Abington, eliminated obstetrics August 1, 2003 • Reproductive Gynecologist David Forstein, Bala Cynwyd, moved to South Carolina in 2003 • General and Breast Surgeon Robert Gastfriend closed his practice Jan. 1, 2004, noting "My premium for 2004 is so exhorbitant that it alone has put me out of business regardless of the MCARE bill." • Internist/Nephrologist Daniel George, Lankenau Hospital, was forced to give up the practice of internal medicine in 2003 and limit practice to nephrology alone in order to be able to afford increased premiums which would otherwise have doubled • Anesthesiologist Sherif Gobran, United Anesthesia Associates at Lankenau Hospital, relocated to Delaware in December 2002 • Plastic Surgeon Mark Granick, serving Philadelphia and Montgomery County, has moved to New Jersey • Ob/Gyn Vivian Greenberg, Abington Hospital stopped delivering babies in 2003 • Cardiologist and Electrophysiologist Allan Greenspan, Abington Hospital, relocated to Delaware in 2003 due to the malpractice crisis • Ob/Gyn Alan Grossman, Abington Hospital, passed away in October 2003; his colleagues note that "this is another example of how patients can lose docs and have none to replace them." • Ob/Gyn Christina Hammill, Bryn Mawr Hospital, relocated to Maryland in spring of 2002 • Anesthesiologist Mark Hammill, United Anesthesia Associates at Main Line Health, relocated to Maryland in the spring of 2002 • Pediatrician Richard Haupt, Lankenau Hospital, took a position in the pharmaceutical industry in 2003 • Pediatrician Nelson Henry is currently commuting to Maryland to work pending a permanent move in 2004, having previously left a group practice in PA income • Holy Redeemer Hospital has lost 10 surgeons and two orthopedic surgeons as a result of liability premiums, according to President and CEO Michael Laign in testimony given to the PA House Majority Policy Committee in 2003 • Ob/Gyn W. Michael Hogan, Bryn Mawr Hospital, left PA in 2003 • Orthopedic Surgeon Leigh Hopkins, Bryn Mawr Hospital, left PA in 2003 • General Surgeon Sam Horton, who practices in Oklahoma, has held an active PA medical license since completing his surgical training at Abington Hospital in 1988. HE HAS NEVER PRACTICED MEDICINE IN PENNSYLVANIA, yet has held a license to be able to write prescriptions during visits and because he intended to "retire" from the US Health Service on land he owns in Pennsylvania. As a result of the medical liability situation here, however, he has decided not to renew the license and not to settle here. His name is included as a "Disappearing Doctor" in Pennsylvania because his license is counted the same as any physician who actively practices here when attempts are made to determine the number of physicians in the state. He is not alone in this. • Internist/Nephrologist Edward Hovick, Lankenau Hospital, was forced to give up the practice of internal medicine in 2003 and limit practice to nephrology alone in order to be able to afford increased premiums which would otherwise have doubled • Pediatrician Daniel Hyman, Abington Hospital, moved to New York in 2003 • Ob/Gyn Kristin Jackson, Abington Hospital, relocated to Florida in 2003 due to malpractice premiums; she was in her 30's • Ob/Gyn Julia Johansson, Abington Hospital, is moving to Utah in 2003 because of the high cost of insurance and low reimbursement rates in PA • Ob/Gyn David Klebanoff, Abington Hospital, transferred to “employed” status at a local hospital in 2003 • Orthopedic Surgeon James Kohl, Bryn Mawr Orthopedics, will retire earlier than planned "because of malpractice" on April 1, 2004 • Hand Specialist Scott Kozen, Abington Hospital, left private practice in 2003 to work for Temple University Hospital so that malpractice premiums would be covered • Pulmonologist Neil LaBove, Central Montgomery Medical Center, relocated to Rhode Island in 2003 because of excessive insurance costs in PA; his wife was a very experienced med-surgical nurse at Central Montgomery Medical Center • Ob/Gyn Joel Lebed (See Philadelphia County) • Orthopedic Surgeon Roy Lefkoe, Graduate and Lenkenau Hospitals, was forced to stop performing surgery in April 2001 due to liability premiums • Internist Ronald Levin, Abington Hospital, relocated to North Carolina in 2003 due to liability costs • Neurosurgeon Gregory Lignelli, left Pottstown Memorial Medical Center two years ago, and a replacement surgeon has not yet been recruited • Madeline Long, Brwn Mawr Hospital, retired early in 2001 "due to malpractice costs in this state." • Anesthesiologist Denise Mann, United Anesthesia Associates at Lankenau Hospital, relocated to another area hospital due to liability premiums in February 2003 • Endocrinologist James McCabe, Bryn Mawr Hospital, is retiring early in 2003 • Internist/Nephrologist Francis McCuster, Lankenau Hospital, has been forced to give up the practice of internal medicine in 2003 and limit practice to nephrology alone in order to be able to afford increased premiums which would otherwise have doubled • Anesthesiologist Mary McLaughlin, United Anesthesia Associates at Bryn Mawr Hospital, relocated to Delaware in January 2003 • Neurosurgeon Richard C. Mendel, Pottstown Memorial Medical Center, left in August 2002 • Orthopedic Surgeon Larry Miller, Chief of Orthopedic Surgery at Lankenau Hospital, relocated to Camden, NJ Sept. 1 2002 to become Chief of Orthopedics at Cooper Medical Center, following an increase of malpractice premiums to 20% of the complete overhead for his seven-member practice, compared with a national average of 2%. Several other members of his former practice are seeking employment in New Jersey as well • Internist/Nephrologist Corinne Morgan, Lankenau Hospital, was forced to give up the practice of internal medicine in 2003 and limit practice to nephrology alone in order to be able to afford increased premiums which would otherwise have doubled • Internist Carol Most-Levin, Abington Hospital, relocated to North Carolina in 2003 due to liability costs • Reproductive Endocrinologist John Murphy, Abington Hospital, moved to Waltham, MA in 2003 • ENT Surgeon Doug Nadel, Central Montgomery Medical Center, closed his Lansdale office in 2003 due to his inability to recruit an associate, and will be concentrating his practice at Doylestown Hospital alone • Family Practitioner Michelle Naps, Summit Family Practice, left medicine and went into computer work in 2003 • Pediatric Neurologist Tina Narayan (see Philadelphia County) • Hand Specialist Mark Nissenbaum, Abington Hospital, limited his practice to minor outpatient procedures in 2003 and seen a reduction in premiums from $95,000 to $5,000 • Ob/Gyn Valerie Omicioli, Wynnewood, stopped delivering ba bies in 2003 due to insurance premiums • Neurosurgeon David Pagnanelli, Abington Hospital, moved to Hendersonville , NC • Plastic Surgeon Ian Parker, a fellow at the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine, will leave PA when he completes his training in June 2004, noting that "I have no intention of staying in the area...I know of no single resident graduating last year or this year who is remaining in the area." • Psychiatrist Naomi Parrish, King of Prussia, retired early in December 2002 after her malpractice carrier cancelled all policies. • Family Practitioner Inna Pendrak left private practice on Jan. 1, 2003 to work for the health insurance industry due to excessive liability costs • Endocrinologist David Piatok left PA on June 1, 2003 because of excessive liability insurance costs • Premiere Orthopedics of Havertown has lost two of 20 surgeons, and another is preparing to leave for NJ • Radiologist Faith Rachofsky, Montgomery Hospital, retired early in 2003, and her group noted “the malpractice crisis and our inability to get conventional malpractice insurance definitely contributed to her retirement” • Ob/Gyn Nancy Roberts, Mainline Perinatal, has given up obstetrics, leaving only three members of the five physician group delivering babies; as her only other female associate has also been forced to eliminate obstetrics, their patients no longer have the option of choosing a woman obstetrician to deliver their babies • Cardiologist James Robertson, Abington Hospital's Chair of Cardiology, relocated to Rhode Island in 2003 due in part to malpractice concerns • Neurosurgeon Murray Robinson, Abington Hospital, moved to Cincinnati, Ohio • Orthopedic Surgeon Jonathan Rogers, former Chief of Orthopedic Surgery at Chestnut Hill Hospital has left PA • ENT Charles Rojer, Abington Memorial Hospital, retired in 2003 • Ob/Gyn Susan Rose, Mainline Perinatal, has given up obstetrics, leaving only three members of the five physician group delivering babies; as her only other female associate has also been forced to eliminate obstetrics, their patients no longer have the option of choosing a woman obstetrician to deliver their babies • Internist David Rosenthal, Abington Hospital and Elkins Park Medical Group, retired in April 2001 earlier than planned due the negative practice atmosphere in PA; he is now volunteering in a free clinic for the working uninsured • Internist/Nephrologist Charles Schleifer, Lankenau Hospital, was forced to give up the practice of internal medicine in 2003 and limit practice to nephrology alone in order to be able to afford increased premiums which would otherwise have doubled • Anesthesiologist Eric Seem, United Anesthesia Associates at Main Line Health, relocated to New Jersey • Internist/Nephrologist Aqeel Siddiqui, Lankenau Hospital, was forced to give up the practice of internal medicine in 2003 and limit practice to nephrology alone in order to be able to afford increased premiums which would otherwise have doubled • Family Practitioner Steve Siegler, Summit Family Practice, relocated to Texas in 2003 • Internist/Nephrologist Miles Sigler, Lankenau Hospital, was forced to give up the practice of internal medicine in 2003 and limit practice to nephrology alone in order to be able to afford increased premiums which would otherwise have doubled • Ob/Gyn Jay Sivitz (See Philadelphia County) • Plastic Surgeon James Slavin, Abington Hospital, left private practice in 2003 to teach part-time at Penn • Orthopedic Surgeon Michael H. Sneddon, Bryn Mawr Hospital, Orthopedic Specialists of Bryn Mawr, announced in a letter to his patients in July 2002 that he was moving to Virginia, citing the medical malpractice crisis as a reason • Internist Christina Stasiuk, Huntington Valley, closed her practice in 2002 after 15 years and accepted an administrative position. Bilingual in English and Ukranian, Dr. Stasiuk has served a large Ukranian population along with her general practice • General Surgeon Paul Stewart, Abington Hospital, moved to Belfast, Maine when he realized insurance reform was “nowhere in sight” • ENT Lynn Sumerson retired early and left the state • Internist/Nephrologist Keith Superdock, Lankenau Hospital, was forced to give up the practice of internal medicine in 2003 and limit practice to nephrology alone in order to be able to afford increased premiums which would otherwise have doubled • Internist/Nephrologist Brenden Teehan, Lankenau Hospital, was forced to give up the practice of internal medicine in 2003 and limit practice to nephrology alone in order to be able to afford increased premiums which would otherwise have doubled • Family Practitioner Melanie Toltzis, Abington Hospital, was forced to leave clinical practice for several months in 2003 due to the liability crisis, but remained in PA and retains her PA medical license; she began practicing again in late 2003 • Radiologist Jay Torres, Holy Redeemer Hospital, left PA in 2003 due to liability costs • United Anesthesia Associates, Main Line Health, reports a reduction of physician staff from 37 to 28 from 2002 to 2003 • Anesthesiologist Peter Vacca, United Anesthesia Associates at Lankenau Hospital, relocated to another area hospital due to liability premiums in April 2003 • Ob/Gyn Mia VanEken, Lankenau Hospital, will relocate to Arizona in December 2003 • Ob/Gyn Gregory Van Gundy, Lankenau, relocated to Maine • General Surgeon David von Ruden, Lankenau Hospital, relocated to Baltimore, Maryland in 2003 after 25 years of practice • |