John Conyers: “there is one word that best describes this closed rule: cowardly. This is a Republican leadership that fears a real…”

“there is one word that best describes this closed rule: cowardly. This is a Republican leadership that fears a real debate on this cold hearted proposal that would rob victims of medical malpractice. They fear that too many of their own Members would vote for a democratic bill because it makes sense and would address the problem. They have decided to dodge a clean vote on a real bill and bury real debate in procedural doubletalk. They have decided to let their Members hide behind parliamentary tricks. The Republican leadership has shredded any semblance of fairness or open debate. Just last year, for the first time since 1910, this Republican leadership denied the Minority party a motion to recommit. Today, the two most senior members of the House of Representatives, who are also the two Ranking Democrats on the Committees of jurisdiction, are being denied the opportunity to offer the amendment of their choosing. The Republican leadership's bill doesn't solve the problem of medical malpractice insurance rates skyrocketing. It has no insurance reform at all. Doctors who are being price gouged by insurance companies will not see one cent of savings from this bill. The simple fact is that draconian caps on damages do not reduce insurance premiums. In a comparison of states that enacted severe tort restrictions in the mid-1980s and those that resisted enacting any tort reform, no correlation was found between tort reform and insurance rates.”