Opinion ID: 2259855
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: statistical analysis of claims filed with the administrator

Text: 72. Between April 6, 1976, and December 31, 1979, a total of 2,909 claims were filed with the Administrator under the Act. 73. Of these 2,909 claims, a certificate of readiness or its equivalent was filed in 134 cases. 74. Of the 134 cases in which certificates of their equivalent were filed, the certificate or its equivalent was filed within six months of December 31, 1979 in 40% of the cases, and the certificate or its equivalent was filed within one year of December 31, 1979, in 70% of the cases. 75. Of these 134 cases, 14 were tried before arbitration panels, 23 more were settled during panel selection, and 1 was continued by order of the Commonwealth Court, leaving 96 which have not had a final disposition. 76. Of the 96 cases in which there has been no final disposition, arbitration hearings are scheduled in 7 cases; prehearings have been held or scheduled in 12 cases; panel selections have been underway in 54 cases; and panel selections have been completed in 23 cases. 77. Of the 14 cases which were tried, 13 resulted in verdicts by the panel and one was settled while at hearing. 78. Of the 13 panel verdicts, 8 were verdicts for the plaintiff and 5 were verdicts for the defendant. 79. As of December 31, 1979, 6 of the 13 panel verdicts had been appealed and the 30-day appeal period of a seventh case had not yet expired. 80. One of the cases appealed was disposed of by a court of common pleas, which reached the same result as the arbitration panel. 83. Of the 53 panels selected, 36 had 7 members, 5 had 5 members and 12 had 3 members. 84. For these 53 cases, the average length of time between filing a certificate of readiness or its equivalent and appointment of a chairperson, is 7.57 months. 85. The average for the same period, for cases in which certificate or its equivalent was filed in 1979, is 5.3 months. 86. Of the 2,909 claims that have been filed, a total of 698 cases were disposed of by means of dismissal, transfer to courts of common pleas, discontinuance, settlement, or non pros. 87. Of those 698 cases, 395 were settled with disclosure of the amount of settlement, 9 were settled without disclosure of the amount of settlement, 146 were discontinued without a monetary settlement, 15 were dismissed, 76 were discontinued by issue of non pros, and 57 were transferred to courts of common pleas. 88. Of the 2,909 claims that were filed, 176 cases, or approximately 6% of the total cases filed and approximately 28% of the total number of cases in which conciliation conferences were held, were settled, discontinued, or ended following the conciliation conferences. 89. Of the 2,909 claims that have been filed, 48 of these claims were filed in 1976, and 39 of the 48 claims were disposed of as of December 31, 1979. 90. Of the 2,909 claims filed, 422 of those claims were filed in 1977, and 232 of the 422 cases were disposed of as of December 31, 1979. 91. Of the 2,909 claims filed, 1,166 of those claims were filed in 1978 and 311 of the 1,166 claims were disposed of as of December 31, 1979. 92. Of the 2,909 claims filed, 1,273 of those claims were filed in 1979, and 100 of the 1,273 claims were disposed of as of December 31, 1979. 93. Of the 2,909 claims filed, 625 are one-half year old or less. 94. During 1978 and 1979 new cases were filed with the Administrator at the rate of approximately 100 cases per month. 95. There are many cases in the inventory of cases pending under the Act where the amount in controversy is under $10,000. The basic theme running throughout our opinion in Parker was that the Act must be given time to work out its initial problems before our courts should step in and determine its constitutionality. [4] Today, we are satisfied that sufficient time has passed to allow for a meaningful evaluation and must regretably conclude that the lengthy delay occasioned by the arbitration system therein does in fact burden the right of a jury trial with onerous conditions, restrictions or regulations which . . . make the right practically unavailable. Id., 483 Pa. at 119, 394 A.2d 939, quoting Smith's case, 381 Pa. 223, 231, 112 A.2d 625, 629 (1955). Nor can we agree that the actual operation of the Act's arbitration procedure is reasonably designed to effectuate the desired objective of affording the plaintiff a swifter adjudication of his claim, at a minimal cost. 483 Pa. at 120, 394 A.2d at 939. The findings made by the Commonwealth Court indicate that the arbitration panels provided for under the Act are incapable of providing the prompt determination and adjudication of medical malpractice claims which was the goal of the Act. See § 102, 40 P.S. § 1301.102. Nor has the arbitration system improved within the last year. [5] Papers filed with this Court included a statistical analysis of the health care panels up to May 31, 1980. These documents reveal that as of May 31, 1980, a total of 3,452 cases had been filed with the Administrator and that only 936 of these cases had been resolved, settled or terminated. This means that 73 per cent of the cases filed with the administrator have not been resolved. Even worse, six of the original 48 cases filed in 1976 remain unresolved, despite the passage of four years. No extraordinary circumstances have been offered to explain this intolerable delay. Furthermore, as of May 31, 1980, 38 per cent of the claims filed in 1977, 65 per cent of the claims filed in 1978, and 85 per cent of the claims filed in 1979 remain unresolved. Such delays are unconscionable and irreparably rip the fabric of public confidence in the efficiency and effectiveness of our judicial system. Most importantly, these statistics amply demonstrate that the legislative scheme is incapable of achieving its stated purpose. See Parker v. Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, 483 Pa. at 121, 394 A.2d at 940. We are compelled, therefore, to declare unconstitutional section 309 of the Act, 40 P.S. § 1301.309, giving the health care arbitration panels original exclusive jurisdiction over medical malpractice claims because the delays involved in processing these claims under the prescribed procedures set up under the Act result in an oppressive delay and impermissibly infringes upon the constitutional right to a jury. Nothing in this opinion, however, should be taken as a retreat from our long-held belief in arbitration as a viable, expeditious, alternative method of dispute-resolution. Parker v. Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, 483 Pa. at 120, 394 A.2d at 939-40, citing Flightways Corp. v. Keystone Helicopter Corp., 459 Pa. 660, 662-63, 331 A.2d 184, 185 (1975); Capecci v. Joseph Capecci, Inc., 392 Pa. 32, 139 A.2d 563 (1958); and Children's Hospital of Philadelphia v. American Arbitration Ass'n., 231 Pa.Super. 230, 234, 331 A.2d 848, 850 (1974). Our conclusion merely indicates the inability of this statutory scheme to provide an effective alternative dispute resolution forum in the area of medical malpractice. Notwithstanding we are confident, as experience has demonstrated, that arbitration is still a viable alternative that can be effective in many areas. Accordingly, declaratory judgment is granted in favor of petitioner Mattos, the order of the Court of Common Pleas of Northampton County dismissing the complaint in trespass against Dr. Thompson is reversed and this case is remanded to that court for proceedings consistent with this opinion. LARSEN, J., filed a concurring and dissenting opinion. ROBERTS, J., filed a dissenting opinion in which EAGEN, C.J., joined.