[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George H. W. Bush (1992, Book I)]
[July 2, 1992]
[Pages 1061-1062]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Message to the Congress Transmitting Proposed Legislation on Health Care

July 2, 1992
To the Congress of the United States:
    I am pleased to transmit today for your immediate consideration and 
enactment the ``Health Care Liability Reform and Quality of Care 
Improvement Act of 1992.'' Also transmitted is a section-by-section 
analysis.
    This legislative proposal would assist in stemming the rising costs 
of health care caused by medical professional liability. During recent 
years, the costs of defensive medical practice and of litigation related 
to health care disputes have had a substantial impact on the 
affordability and availability of quality medical care. The bill attacks 
these very serious problems.
    The bill would establish incentives for States to adopt within 3 
years quality assurance measures and tort reforms. In addition, the 
health care reforms would apply to medical care and treatment funded 
through specific Federal programs pertaining to health care and employee 
benefits and to claims under the Federal Tort Claims Act. The tort 
reforms include: (1) a reasonable

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cap on noneconomic damages; (2) the elimination of joint and several 
liability for those damages; (3) prohibiting double recoveries by 
plaintiffs; and (4) permitting health care providers to pay damages for 
future costs periodically rather than in a lump sum.
    Last year I recommended enactment of the ``Health Care Liability 
Reform and Quality of Care Improvement Act of 1991.'' The enclosed bill 
includes the core provisions of that bill and expands its scope to 
ensure that treatment under federally funded health care and Federal 
employee benefit programs is subject to key reforms regardless of State 
action. Claims arising from such health care would first be considered 
through a fair system of nonbinding arbitration, in an effort to resolve 
the claims without litigation.
    I urge the prompt and favorable consideration of this proposal, 
which would complement the other initiatives the Administration is 
undertaking regarding malpractice and quality of care.

                                                             George Bush

The White House,
July 2, 1992.