[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 89 (Monday, June 25, 2001)]
[Senate]
[Page S6865]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           TEXT OF AMENDMENTS

  SA 811. Mr. SPECTER submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by 
him to the bill S. 1052, to amend the Public Health Service Act and the 
Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 to protect consumers in 
managed care plans and other health coverage; which was ordered to lie 
on the table; as follows:

       On page 153, strike lines 1 through 14.
       On page 159, between lines 12 and 13, insert the following:
       ``(D) Actions in federal court.--A cause of action 
     described in subparagraph (A) shall be brought and maintained 
     only in the Federal district court for the district in which 
     the plaintiff resides or in which the alleged injury or death 
     that is the subject of such action occurred. In any such 
     action, the court shall apply the laws of the State involved 
     in determining the liability of the defendants.''
                                  ____

  SA 812. Mr. EDWARDS (for Mr. McCain (for himself and Mr. Edwards)) 
proposed an amendment to the bill S. 1052, to amend the Public Health 
Service Act and the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 to 
protect consumers in managed care plans and other health coverage; as 
follows:

       At the appropriate place, insert the following:

     SEC.   . SENSE OF THE SENATE REGARDING FAIR REVIEW PROCESS.

       (a) Findings.--The Senate finds the following:
       (1) A fair, timely, impartial independent external appeals 
     process is essential to any meaningful program of patient 
     protection.
       (2) The independence and objectivity of the review 
     organization and review process must be ensured.
       (3) It is incompatible with a fair and independent appeals 
     process to allow a health maintenance organization to select 
     the review organization that is entrusted with providing a 
     neutral and unbiased medical review.
       (4) The American Arbitration Association and arbitration 
     standards adopted under chapter 44 of title 28, United States 
     Code (28 U.S.C. 651 et seq.) both prohibit, as inherently 
     unfair, the right of one party to a dispute to choose the 
     judge in that dispute.
       (b) Sense of the Senate.--It is the sense of the Senate 
     that--
       (1) every patient who is denied care by a health 
     maintenance organization or other health insurance company 
     should be entitled to a fair, speedy, impartial appeal to a 
     review organization that has not been selected by the health 
     plan;
       (2) the States should be empowered to maintain and develop 
     the appropriate process for selection of the independent 
     external review entity;
       (3) a child battling a rare cancer whose health maintenance 
     organization has denied a covered treatment recommended by 
     its physician should be entitled to a fair and impartial 
     external appeal to a review organization that has not been 
     chosen by the organization or plan that has denied the care; 
     and
       (4) patient protection legislation should not preempt 
     existing State laws in States where there already are strong 
     laws in place regarding the selection of independent review 
     organizations.

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