May. 08, 2002

Gov. Perry Authorizes $200,000 To Assist Texas State Board of Medical Examiners

AUSTIN - Governor Rick Perry announced today he has given the Texas State Board of Medical Examiners a $200,000 grant so the board can hire additional investigators to resolve medical malpractice claims and improve the quality of health care Texans receive.

The funds will come from the appropriation made to the Governor's Office for State Agency Grant Assistance. The state budget provides $4.5 million in the FY 2002-2003 biennium for the governor to use to assist agencies that experience unanticipated budget demands.

"Texans must be assured that bad doctors are disciplined, and the State Board of Medical Examiners must have the resources to aggressively and consistently pursue medical malpractice investigations," Perry said. "The grant provided through my office will help the agency tackle the current case backlog, while bringing some closure to those who have filed complaints."

Perry said he expects the board to use the grant to quickly resolve the 31 cases that have been pending for two or more years. In addition, the governor said he expects the board to launch 150 new investigations based on complaints it has received and to resolve those by Aug. 31, 2003.

The agency has also been instructed to report monthly to the Governor's Office of Budget, Planning and Policy on the agency's progress and actions taken on prioritized cases; progress on agency reorganization; progress on implementation of state audit recommendations; and, use of the supplemental funds provided by the governor.

Last month, Perry outlined a series of corrective measures to fix the medical lawsuit abuse crisis that is hurting doctors and hampering Texans' access to quality, affordable health care. Among the recommendations was improvement of the Board of Medical Examiners' ability to ensure the integrity of the medical profession and safeguard patient care.

Perry noted that Dr. Donald Patrick, the new board executive director, has already identified several steps that could be taken to improve the board's enforcement of existing licensure laws. Those steps include reorganizing the Enforcement Division of the agency, developing procedures to ensure consistent disciplinary enforcement actions, and refocusing the board on its "public safety" mission.