Post by Logan on Mar 3, 2016 6:12:43 GMT -6
House lowers proposed increase to state's cap on medical malpractice claims
The Indiana House on Wednesday reduced a proposed increase to the cap the state places on medical malpractice damages — an issue lawmakers revived and are trying to settle in the final days of the legislative session.
The Republican-controlled House changed Senate Bill 28 to eventually raise the cap to $1.8 million in 2019 and removed any further increases to the limit. The action constituted a step back from a version approved Monday that would have gradually increased the cap to $2.25 million by 2031.
Rep. Jerry Torr, a Carmel Republican, said it’s unusual for the General Assembly to revive an issue of “this magnitude” near the end of the legislative session, which is required to adjourn by March 14. A bill that would have increased the state’s cap and adjusted it to inflation stalled earlier this session.
Torr, who authored the amendment, said the legislature can consider additional increases to the cap in the future. Now the bill would increase the cap to $1.65 million in 2017 before jumping to $1.8 million in 2019. That would represent a $550,000 overall increase from the state’s current cap, which at nearly 20 years old is among the lowest in the nation and could yield a court challenge.
Read more: www.indystar.com/story/news/politics/2016/03/02/house-lowers-proposed-increase-states-cap-medical-malpractice-claims/81226626/
The Indiana House on Wednesday reduced a proposed increase to the cap the state places on medical malpractice damages — an issue lawmakers revived and are trying to settle in the final days of the legislative session.
The Republican-controlled House changed Senate Bill 28 to eventually raise the cap to $1.8 million in 2019 and removed any further increases to the limit. The action constituted a step back from a version approved Monday that would have gradually increased the cap to $2.25 million by 2031.
Rep. Jerry Torr, a Carmel Republican, said it’s unusual for the General Assembly to revive an issue of “this magnitude” near the end of the legislative session, which is required to adjourn by March 14. A bill that would have increased the state’s cap and adjusted it to inflation stalled earlier this session.
Torr, who authored the amendment, said the legislature can consider additional increases to the cap in the future. Now the bill would increase the cap to $1.65 million in 2017 before jumping to $1.8 million in 2019. That would represent a $550,000 overall increase from the state’s current cap, which at nearly 20 years old is among the lowest in the nation and could yield a court challenge.
Read more: www.indystar.com/story/news/politics/2016/03/02/house-lowers-proposed-increase-states-cap-medical-malpractice-claims/81226626/