March 24, 2007

"Long hours and a perception that nonpaying patients are more likely to file malpractice lawsuits are cutting into the number of doctors willing to donate time at the state's 15 free health clinics," according to physician Tim Denton, who volunteers at the clinic in Birmingham's Avondale community. That's despite a 2000 law which was intended to provide liability protection for medical Good Samaritans but which, backers think, may not have gone far enough to set minds at rest. The Birmingham News has details.