Frist Patients’ Rights Bill ‘Denounced’ From All Sides
Sens. Bill Frist (R-Tenn.), John Breaux (D-La.) and James Jeffords (R-Vt.) yesterday introduced their patients' rights bill, which "was denounced with equal vigor by opposing sides in the debate," making its "prospects ... uncertain," the Washington Post reports. The bill, called a "balanced" compromise by its sponsors, would afford all patients with private health insurance a "slender" right to sue their health plans after exhausting an appeals process by an outside review panel. Patients could only sue health plans in federal court, not state court, and awards would be capped at $500,0000. The law allows states that have a patients' rights law in place to be exempt from the federal law if they can prove that the state law's provisions are "consistent with federal law" (Goldstein, Washington Post, 5/16).
Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.), sponsor of another patients' rights bill (S 283) with Sens. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and John Edwards (D-N.C.), said the bill's liability provision "makes a mockery of fair play, is designed to roll back patient protections and inappropriately federalizes issues that should be heard by state courts" (Pear, New York Times, 5/16). Kennedy added that the bill is a "patients' bill of wrongs." McCain called the bill "totally unsatisfactory" (AP/Richmond Times-Dispatch, 5/16). Edwards added that the bill would give HMOs "too much say over" who would be members of the independent review panel (Wagner, Raleigh News & Observer, 5/16). The McCain-Kennedy-Edwards bill would cap awards in federal court at $5 million, but would permit patients to sue in state courts, where damages are unlimited. During a news conference yesterday, Kennedy said that his legislation has the support of nearly 60 senators, adding that he would bring it to the Senate floor after the chamber considers education reform (Washington Post, 5/16).
It appears unclear whether the Frist-Breaux-Jeffords bill has the support of the Senate leadership. Senate Majority Whip Don Nickles (R-Okla.) said that Frist "has moved significantly to the left of where most Senate Republicans were" on patients rights, adding that Frist lost Republican support, but also did not gain "significant" Democratic support (New York Times, 5/16). "I'd rather have nothing at all than pass a really bad bill," Nickles said (Entous, Reuters/Contra Costa Times, 5/15). Rep. Charles Norwood (R-Ga.), sponsor of an earlier patients' rights bill, said of the Frist-Breaux-Jeffords version, "If it is brought up in the House, I will personally exhaust every effort to defeat it" (Washington Post, 5/16). He added that the bill would overturn laws already in place in Georgia, California, Louisiana and Texas (Malone, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 5/16).
Insurance groups also seem wary of the Frist-Breaux-Jeffords bill. The Health Benefits Coalition, a group representing insurers and employers, said that the bill "opens up the health care system to new lawsuits that will drive up costs" (New York Times, 5/16). The American Association of Health Plans added that it has "serious concerns [that] elements of this legislation could pose a setback for efforts to improve the quality of health care for consumers." The American Medical Association withheld comment on the bill (Sher, Chattanooga Times Free Press, 5/16). However, Breaux said that while the bill does not "please everyone," it has "one distinct advantage over" the McCain-Kennedy-Edwards bill -- the support of President Bush (Raleigh News & Observer, 5/16). For his part, Bush said yesterday in a statement that the bill "provides strong patient protections for all Americans, ensures that doctors and patients make medical decisions and holds health plans accountable by providing patients with meaningful remedies when they have been wrongly denied medical care" (Chattanooga Times & Free Press, 5/16).
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