Doctors are too scared of getting sued to make any steps forward in finding a cure for cancer, Lord Saatchi said as he launched a Private Members’ Bill which will give legal defence for doctors who make medical innovations.
Fear of litigation is acting as a deterrent in the development of cutting-edge cancer treatments, the advertising mogul said.
He said that innovation is stifled by medical negligence law because no doctor has a defence against negligence claims if they have deviated from standard procedure. The bill aims to clarify the differences between ”responsible innovation” and ”reckless experimentation”, he said. Work towards the Medical Innovations Bill, began one year ago – only months after his wife Josephine Hart died from a form of ovarian cancer.