Matt Gaetz: “I thank the gentleman for yielding. Today, in the Congress, too many Republicans and Democrats are obsessed with health…”

“I thank the gentleman for yielding. Today, in the Congress, too many Republicans and Democrats are obsessed with health insurance, often at the expense of the reforms that could reduce the cost of healthcare. If we cut the cost of healthcare, we make solutions far more attainable for affordable coverage. I support this tort reform legislation because it will make healthcare in America more accessible and less expensive. Defensive medicine costs Americans over $50 billion. Commonsense reform will eliminate these costs, help patients afford healthcare, all while reducing the Federal deficit. It is no surprise that defensive medicine costs so much. One survey recently reported that 93 percent of doctors practice defensive medicine due to a broken tort system. It is outrageous that we force doctors to subject patients to costly, unnecessary, and occasionally harmful tests just to avoid frivolous lawsuits. Let's go back to performing medical tests when needed for the patient, not to simply avoid exposure in litigation for insurance companies. This will lower healthcare costs. The New England Journal of Medicine found that 1 in every 14 doctors gets sued each year. An earlier Harvard study revealed that 40 percent of these malpractice suits were groundless, yet over a quarter of these frivolous cases are settled, and the average payout was $300,000.…”