HMOs are offering broad coverage at a low price and in return the patient gives up some control over treatment decisions. Now before you send angry mail about how you're forced into the HMO by your employer, think about that. Maybe your company should choose another plan. Maybe it's the government's fault because it allows your company to deduct all the costs of health insurance as a business expense but doesn't give you the same right if you buy on your own. HMOs are not beyond the law.
Patients already have the right to sue.
Cynthia Herdrich's HMO doctor forced her to wait eight days for an ultrasound test for abdominal pain. In the meantime, her appendix ruptured and required major surgery. So she won a malpractice suit. Herdrich then filed another suit based on the fact that the HMO rewards employees for controlling costs. That's what the Supreme Court knocked down.