OBs say that Washington’s mini-mal reform isn’t enough:

“These proposals really do nothing to lower the exposure risk for obstetricians,” said Anton-McIntyre, who had confronted Gov. Chris Gregoire last month during a state medical association meeting in Olympia.

Anton-McIntyre, who said she has never been sued for her obstetrical care, told Gregoire that she needed to see improvements in the liability environment or she would give notice to her practice June 1.

“When there is a damaged baby, it is limitless” for damages, Anton-McIntyre said in an interview. “Without some kind of program in Washington to protect obstetricians, it’s unreasonable to expect us to expose ourselves like this.”

Anton-McIntyre said she would favor a system more like Canada’s, where the government assumes the costs of caring for children damaged by birth injuries, she said. Similar “no fault” programs funded by doctor fees also care for birth-injured children in Virginia and Florida.