Jane Harman: “I am a strong supporter of California's Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act--or MICRA. With it, California charted a…”

“I am a strong supporter of California's Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act--or MICRA. With it, California charted a bold and creative course toward responsible medical malpractice reform. In my view, the entire country would do well to follow California's lead, and it makes sense to have Federal legislation on the subject. But this particular bill includes the very same flaws contained in legislation I opposed last year--and I cannot support it. H.R. 4280 is overly broad, and the cap on punitive and noneconomic awards is not indexed and does not reflect its current value. While H.R. 4280 adopts the structure of MICRA, it is weighed down by restrictions on certain causes of action against HMOs, nursing homes, and insurance companies--areas in which California has enacted significant protections for patients. And the $250,000 cap on punitive and noneconomic awards must be adjusted upward. In the past, I voted for other medical liability legislation. I did so with the hope and expectation that improvements would be made in conference with the Senate to narrow its egregious provisions or that, in re-introducing the bill, these changes would be made. Mr. Speaker, once again the closed process by which we are considering medical malpractice reform belies any desire by the majority to make the improvements I and many others believe are necessary.”