The Washington Monthly

July 6, 2004

BEST EDWARDS ATTACK SO FAR....Just how desperate will conservative attacks on John Edwards get? It's early days still, but here's the winner so far, courtesy of The Corner (natch). It seems that Edwards favors having translators available at big-city hospitals, and Jim Boulet smells blood:

Why all this interest in translation mandates by a trial lawyer? Professional translators make mistakes. According to the January 2003 Pediatics study, “Errors in Medical Interpretation,” [warning: PDF file], 53% of the translations by professional interpreters contain at least one error “with potential clinical consequences.”

Every translation error by a hospital-paid employee can become grounds for a costly lawsuit -- something unlikely to happen if the “translator” is also a friend or family member. Here’s a slogan for their campaign: “If you think medical costs are too low, vote Kerry-Edwards in 2004.”

Yep, that's right: Edwards favors having translators available not because it would cut down on medical errors, but precisely because it would increase medical errors and thus provide more work for his trial lawyer buddies! What a sly dog that John Edwards is.

Will this become a Republican talking point? I can hear it now: John Edwards: he's in favor of increasing deaths and injuries in hospitals so that lawyers can make a better living. Coming soon to a TV commercial near you!

—Kevin Drum 3:28 PM Permalink | Trackbacks | Comments (0)

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