Phil Gingrey: “Madam Speaker, in closing, as I said at the outset of the hour, this bill is not about denying access to a redress of…”

“Madam Speaker, in closing, as I said at the outset of the hour, this bill is not about denying access to a redress of grievances, if you will, for a patient who has been injured by a physician or a facility who is practicing below the standard of care for that community. Nothing in this bill does that, and it is not a bill to take away the right of a profession, an attorney who is engaged in personal injury work, to do their work and do it well. It is not about that at all. It really is about two things. It is about saving a great profession for my doctor colleagues, yes, but that is not the most important thing. The most important thing is to try to save a health care system, arguably the best in the civilized world, from the destruction of a legal system that has run amuck. That is what H.R. 5 is about, the HEALTH Act of 2003, the Medical Justice Act, if you will. I am a very proud cosponsor of this legislation. Tomorrow, when I vote for H.R. 5, it will be a very important moment in my young political life. I predict that this bill will pass this House of Representatives and we will move it on to the Senate. It is time for the Senate to act. Patients demand it. Our constituents demand it. It is too important to miss this opportunity.”