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March 2006
Note: Questions relating to state legislative activity or any of the items noted in ACS Cross Country may be directed to Mindy Baker, State Affairs Associate, at mbaker@facs.org.
Indiana Trauma Legislation Close to Enactment
The Indiana General Assembly is considering two trauma-related bills in its current legislative session. The first, SB 88, requires every occupant of a motor vehicle to wear a safety belt (with certain limited exceptions) and every motor vehicle sold in the state to be equipped with safety belts. The second bill, SB 284, authorizes the Department of Health as the lead agency for the development, implementation, and oversight of a comprehensive trauma care system. Both bills passed the Senate (26-21 for SB 88; 50-0 for SB 284), and at press time were under consideration by their respective House committees.
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States May Require Attorneys to Carry Malpractice Insurance
Citing an increasing number of lawsuits, New Jersey, Tennessee, and Virginia all have introduced legislation in 2006 that focuses attention on the problem of uninsured attorneys.
A resolution in Virginia, which passed the House 92-6, asks the Supreme Court of Virginia and the Virginia State Bar to examine the problem of uninsured attorneys and to consider either requiring malpractice insurance for attorneys, or creating a client/victim compensation fund.
In New Jersey, HB 2341 (which is currently in the Judiciary Committee) would require attorneys to carry malpractice insurance of at least $100,000. This bill is similar to legislation introduced in 2005.
Tennessee’s HB 2877 does not require that attorneys carry malpractice insurance, but rather requires those attorneys who advertise to include a statement disclosing both whether they have malpractice insurance, and if so, “the per incident and aggregate liability limits of such policy.” HB 2877 was introduced February 16 and passed first consideration.
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Bariatric Medicine Legislation Is on the Rise
As obesity continues to be a major health concern for many Americans, states are struggling to keep pace with bariatric medicine issues. Currently, many states do not have laws that pro-vide for mandatory medical treatment for the morbidly obese. On February 21, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced federal regulations to provide for Medicare coverage of bariatric surgery, and it is anticipated that the states and private payers will take notice and follow suit.
Medicare will not cover bariatric surgery procedures for beneficiaries who are only overweight. The beneficiaries also must have at least one disease associated with obesity, such as hyperten-sion, type 2 diabetes, or heart disease.
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Missouri and Virginia have recently introduced legislation on required treatment. Although Virginia’s HB 624 was tabled in committee, Missouri’s SB 597 is currently getting a second reading in the Small Business, Insurance & Industrial Relations Committee.
In Georgia, HR 1159 asks the Department of Community Health, the Department of Human Resources, and the Insurance Department to “collect data on individual cases of obesity in order to evaluate whether health insurance coverage for the treatment of obesity should be covered in this state.” The report is due to the legislature before January 1, 2007. This resolution is currently on second reading in the House.
In Indiana, a physician must monitor a bariatric surgery patient for five years and file a report with the state. Previous law stated that these reports were “public record.” SB 266 would change that report from a “public record” to “confidential” and a recent amendment to the legislation includes the phrase “unless the physician is unable to locate the patient after making reasonable efforts.” Unfortunately, the legislation does not define what constitutes a “reasonable effort.”
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Arizona's Ballot Measure Put on Hold
Because Arizona’s constitution does not allow the state legislature to enact caps, Arizona’s medical community introduced SCR 1035 in 2005. If the legislature declined to act on SCR 1035 in 2005, its sponsors would have the option of putting the issue on the November 2006 ballot.
Arizonans for Access to Health Care (AAHC), created by the Arizona Medical Association to focus on liability reform, has decided to postpone putting SCR 1035 on the November ballot. A press release from the organization indicated that a recent poll showed that although the majority of Arizonans believe there is a health care crisis, they are unwilling to support significant reforms. Nonetheless, AAHC may include this issue on the 2008 ballot.
AAHC and the Arizona Medical Association are now focusing on other legislative reforms. One bill, SB 1351, would require the statutorily required elements of proof in a medical liability case to be established by clear and convincing evidence when related to specified emergency circumstances. Even in the face of heavy opposition from the Trial Lawyers Association, the bill passed out of the health committee 5-1 (with one absent vote).
To read the entire press release regarding AAHC’s decision, go to: http://www.azmedassn.org/publications/stat/2006_0125.htm
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Tennessee Joins the Growing List of States in Liability Crisis
On February 14, the American Medical Association (AMA) officially designated Tennessee as a “crisis state.” Citing increases in liability premiums and their own 2004 data, the AMA noted that of Tennessee's 95 counties:
- 81 counties have no residing neurosurgeon in patient care.
- 49 counties have no residing orthopaedic surgeon in patient care.
- 47 counties have no residing emergency physician in patient care.
- 42 counties have no residing obstetrician-gynecologist in patient care.
The ACS Tennessee Chapter has joined 40 other organizations in a Medical Liability Reform (MLR) campaign to push for meaningful reforms. To visit the campaign’s Web site, go to: http://www.mlrnow.org/.
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Past Issues of ACS Cross Country:
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ACS State Affairs
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Division of Advocacy and Health Policy
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Jon H. Sutton
Manager, State Affairs
Chicago Headquarters
312-202-5358
jsutton@facs.org |
Mindy Baker
State Affairs Associate
Chicago Headquarters
312-202-5363
mbaker@facs.org |
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Revised March 2, 2006
Advocacy and Health Policy
This page and all contents are Copyright © 2003-2006
by the American College of Surgeons, Chicago, IL 60611-3211
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