In December, Patrick McMahon, president of Scranton, Pa., distributorship Forms Plus Inc., didn't take his family skiing or give his teenagers snowboards as planned. The reason for his change of heart? The growing medical liability insurance crisis has hit Pennsylvania hard.
If that sounds far-fetched, consider that some doctors in Scranton stopped accepting new patients Dec. 1, 2002, and refused to perform most surgeries after Dec. 15. The situation was so serious that one large surgical practice seriously considered shutting its doors this year rather than paying ever-increasing premiums. McMahon simply didn't think it was prudent to ski while the area's orthopedic surgeons weren't working.
McMahon admits he probably was overly cautious. Nevertheless, he had been troubled by the insurance crisis for several weeks. Reports circulated about doctors leaving the community to practice in nearby states, where premiums were significantly lower. Physician friends told McMahon the situation made it difficult to recruit doctors unless they had family ties to the area.
As a business owner, McMahon recognized the problem threatened the economic health of northeastern Pennsylvania. How could the area expect to attract new businesses if it had the reputation for second-class health care? Shortly after his wife wrote to the state's governor-elect, Edward G. Rendell, about the situation, McMahon decided to get involved, too. (Rendell is governor now.)
His solution: installing two billboards on a well-traveled road. The first one motorists saw was aimed at doctors, asking them not to leave the community. The second one displayed a message pleading with residents to prevent doctors from leaving. Both billboards included the distributorship's logo.
McMahon knew that billboard space is considerably less expensive in mid-December, which was ideal timing for his messages. (Liability insurance premiums typically are due Jan. 1.) Still, he says, the advertising cost several thousand dollars. Forms Plus' charity committee paid for one billboard, a move McMahon could justify because he believed the signs delivered a vital message to the community. At the same time, he realized the distributorship, which is strong in the medical market, might gain publicity from the move. Therefore, he paid for the second billboard with Forms Plus' marketing budget.
"We got incredible feedback from the medical community," McMahon says. "The attention is beyond anything we hoped." An obstetrics and gynecology practice that Forms Plus has called on for years (without success) invited a sales rep to discuss future business. And much to the surprise of Forms Plus employees, the signs appeared in the background when a CNN correspondent reported from Scranton about the insurance crisis earlier this year.
What about the crisis itself? Gov. Rendell announced some changes New Year's Eve that temporarily satisfied the medical community. Physicians made their 2003 insurance payments, and it seems to be business as usual. Since then, President George W. Bush has proposed a cap on medical liability lawsuit payouts. But, McMahon says, if the crisis deepens at the end of this year, he's prepared to take up the cause again and buy more billboard space.
--Katherine House
Patrick McMahon, president of Scranton, Pa., distributorship Forms Plus Inc., installed two billboards in December 2002 to generate public awareness about Pennsylvania's medical liability insurance crisis. Motorists saw the messages for two months, and "we got incredible feedback from the medical community," McMahon says.
