After
a couple of false starts, H.R. 1215, the Protecting Access to Care Act is going
to the House floor this week. This massive medical malpractice bill also
applies to nursing home and drug and device cases. The bill caps
non-economic damages at $250,000, eliminates joint liability for economic and
non-economic loss, caps attorney fees, has a restrictive statute of limitations
and says that a doctor and a pharmaceutical company cannot be named in the same
lawsuit. The bill is very preemptive. If you are from a state
that caps damages, your state keeps its cap, but gets a cap in areas not
currently covered by state law. For example, if your state caps damages
only in medical malpractice cases, your state would get the $250,000 cap for
other health care liability lawsuits, including nursing homes. The bill
applies these limits regardless of the number of parties, the causes of action
or the theory of liability, so the cap applies to intentional torts or other
sorts of reckless misconduct.
The bill will not get
better during floor debate. The only amendments that will be allowed are
amendments that make the bill worse for patients. The debate on this bill
will begin on Tuesday with vote on final passage scheduled for Wednesday.
Help us defeat H.R.
1215. Through the Take Justice Back Campaign, you can easily write and call members of Congress by visiting www.takejusticeback.com/protectpatients.
Please visit the link below to view a short viral video that tells the story of 7 year-old Dahlia
Ramirez, who suffered horrific injuries caused by medical negligence. Thanks to
the civil justice system, Dahlia now has the best possible chance at living a
normal life.
https://www.facebook.com/pralaw
Thank you for your
help and support as we fight to defeat H.R. 1215. Please let us know if
you have any questions.
