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Washington, D.C.,
June 3, 2005 – The Illinois Legislature this week passed
meaningful medical malpractice reform legislation, after
reaching a bipartisan agreement that should help improve access
to healthcare, according to the American Tort Reform Association
(ATRA). The bill—S.B. 475—now awaits approval from Gov. Rod
Blagojevich, who has indicated he will sign the legislation.
“We commend the
Senate and House leadership for reaching an agreement that will
help improve access to health care for the citizens of
Illinois,” said ATRA President Sherman Joyce. “The state’s
lawsuit-driven healthcare crisis has driven more than 160
doctors out of Judicial Hellholes St. Clair and Madison
Counties, jeopardizing patient access to healthcare.”
Joyce further notes
that eighty-five percent of medical malpractice claims concluded
in St. Clair County between 1999 and 2003 resulted in no payment
to the plaintiff.
Provisions of S.B.
475 will:
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Limit noneconomic
damages at $500,000 per individual physician and $1 million
per hospital;
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Require insurance
companies to disclose formulas used to determine rates;
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Allow physician
disciplinary histories to be posted on the Internet;
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Allow for an
increased number of state investigators to look into medical
malpractice claims.
S.B. 475 was the
result of negotiations between lawmakers, hospital officials and
physicians, ending almost two years of debate that had at times
politically polarized members of the Legislature.
“Without the
cooperative efforts from both lawmakers and health care
officials, this legislative success would not have been
possible,” Joyce said. “We would also like to applaud the
tireless efforts of the Illinois Civil Justice League for
helping to bring this issue to the forefront of the political
debate.”
Adverse litigation
environments in many states and large jury awards are forcing
doctors to give up specialty practices, leave the profession
altogether or relocate to other states with more balanced
litigation systems. Illinois is considered a “crisis” state by
the American Medical Association, which has identified only 6
states that are not in crisis or showing signs of the access to
healthcare crisis.
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