[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 148 (2002), Part 11]
[Senate]
[Pages 15155-15156]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                          MEDICAL MALPRACTICE

  Mr. THOMAS. Mr. President, I will visit for a few minutes about 
medical malpractice, which we will deal with tomorrow. Part of the bill 
originally had to do with pharmaceuticals. We have had a hard time 
focusing on pharmaceuticals. The amendment I will discuss expands 
health care access and has to do with the additional cost brought about 
by the difficulty arising with lawsuits and medical liability. We need 
some reform in this area.
  In my State of Wyoming, the Wyoming Medical Society has been very 
concerned. Insurers have been pulling out of the markets or increasing 
premiums that are above affordable levels. It is a substantial problem. 
The crisis is now in Casper, WY. Of course, it is all over the country 
as well. We are beginning to lose some of the practitioners. That is 
difficult, particularly in an underserved area.
  I rise today to support the McConnell amendment on medical 
malpractice

[[Page 15156]]

tort reform. The Senate passed this exact language in 1995. There is 
little reason we should not pass it again. Physicians alone spent $6.3 
billion in malpractice insurance premiums last year. This does not 
include what other providers such as hospitals have paid. This 
amendment is a good step in the right direction to reduce or limit the 
cost of health care to all persons.
  The McConnell amendment does a number of things, all of which are 
very important and necessary. It limits punitive damages to two times 
the sum of compensatory damages. The amendment only allows punitive 
damages in cases where the award has been by clear and convincing 
evidence. It also places limits on attorney's fees, limiting lawyers to 
collecting a third of the first $150,000 of an award and 25 percent of 
the award for amounts above $150,000. It requires lawsuits be filed 
within 2 years of the claimant's discovery of the injury. It encourages 
States to develop alternative dispute resolution mechanisms to help 
resolve issues before the court.
  It seems to me it is a step in the right direction in doing something 
about these costs. Some of the premiums that physicians are required to 
pay to practice are amazing. The result is many retreat from practice 
are particularly those in Medicare where relatively low fees are being 
paid.
  Median malpractice awards increased by 43 percent in 2002 to $1 
million; 52 percent of all jury awards are now over $1 million. These 
excessive awards only contribute to the overall costs of health care 
for all Americans. Since awards drive up malpractice premiums and 
physicians must pass that on to their consumers, health insurance 
premiums for everyone continue to go up.
  Many Americans are not now able to afford health insurance. They are 
currently 40 million uninsured Americans.
  Recent reports show that medical malpractice is responsible for 7 
percent or $5 billion of the overall increases in health care costs. 
Last year, one of the largest physician insurers in the Nation stopped 
its medical malpractice business. As a direct result, some doctors and 
hospitals see their premiums rising 20 to 100 percent. Some specialists 
are paying over $100,000 a year in premiums. Obstetrics is a particular 
problem. Hospitals in two rural counties in West Virginia have stopped 
delivering babies; half of 93 obstetricians in Clark County no longer 
accept new patients. One Nevada obstetrician closed her 10-year 
practice after her malpractice premiums went from $37,000 to $150,000. 
All of this, of course, must come from the patients.
  It is clear something needs to be done to address this growing 
crisis. According to the American Medical Association, 12 States are in 
crisis now; 30 are showing signs of being in crisis; 8 are currently 
OK.
  I hope as we talk about this tomorrow, we can do some things that 
start us moving in the right direction. The cost of health care is 
certainly an important issue to all of us. We have to deal with it in 
pharmaceutical costs. We have sought to deal with it by getting 
physicians into underserved areas by various means. But one of the ways 
that is important and has changed is the matter of the cost of medical 
malpractice tort reform. I hope we can deal with it tomorrow.
  I yield the floor.
  The ACTING President pro tempore. The Senator from Pennsylvania.

                          ____________________