On February 4, 2004, Virginia anesthesiologists joined the more than 2,500 doctors decked in white coats who moved through the streets of Richmond, Virginia, and descended upon the state capitol building to lobby for medical malpractice reform. More than 40 anesthesiologists from the Virginia Society of Anesthesiologists (VSA) attended, including VSA President Stephen P. Long, M.D., VSA President-Elect G. Byron Work, M.D., and ASA President Roger W. Litwiller, M.D., who practices in Roanoke.

Dr. Long was pleased with the turnout. “This event, more than any other in the history of Virginia medicine, has completely and positively changed the landscape of medical practice as it is viewed by both the citizens and legislators of Virginia,” he said. “Because of the efforts of Virginia’s physician community, our patients will be better served for decades to come.”

It was the largest show of physician solidarity in the state since 1977, when doctors lobbied for the state’s original malpractice award cap, and was the largest protest of any kind during the current legislative session, according to capitol police.

It could not have come at a better time. Once considered one of the most protective of physicians, Virginia’s medical malpractice laws are now driving some doctors either out of practice or out of the state. According to the Medical Society of Virginia, the average premium increase for Virginia physicians in 2002 was 66 percent.

Anesthesiologists are among those who have been hit hard by rising malpractice premiums. Currently in Virginia, patients can collect up to $1.7 million in damages from medical malpractice. Trial lawyer associations are opposed to any reduction in the cap and are expected to put up a strong fight to block legislation by Senator Newman and others, which seeks to cap noneconomic damages at $250,000.

Although it is uncertain if the Virginia White Coat Day accomplished anything concrete politically, it most assuredly spoke to the potential power that a unified physician demographic can wield, and it was a siren call to policy makers, legislators and physicians across the country that the medical malpractice crisis is threatening not just physician practices, but patients’ access to quality medical care.

“The gathering here in Richmond was incredible and inspirational and a step forward for the state of Virginia,” Dr. Litwiller said. “But the medical malpractice crisis is not just Virginia’s problem. It is and will continue to be the problem of each and every U.S. citizen. Anyone who is interested in maintaining the highest standards for patient care needs to be involved in this issue. If physicians cannot afford to treat their patients, everyone loses.”

Painting the Town White In one of the largest political rallies in recent Virginia history, more than 2,500 physicians gathered in the capital of Richmond to support medical malpractice reform. Photos courtesy of the Medical Society of Virginia.