Since I just blogged a medmal story about Kentucky, here’s one from Pennsylvania.

Skuba said reduced reimbursements from the government and insurance companies have taken a toll on the hospital’s resources, including a trust fund that has kept the facility in the black and supported a recent 11,400- square-foot expansion that cost more than $2 million.

Another critical factor is the hospital’s difficulty in attracting and keeping qualified physicians and specialists, Skuba said.

Pennsylvania’s medical malpractice rates have chased specialists away, he said, noting the hospital once had seven orthopedic specialists and now have only two.

So medical malpractice expenses are a factor.  Not the only one, but they are a factor.