HATCH ADDRESSES MEDICAL LIABILITY CRISIS
Washington - Sen. Orrin G. Hatch (R-Utah), Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today joined Senators Rick Santorum (R-PA), Jon Kyl (R-AZ), Judd Gregg (R-NH), and Don Nickles (R-OK) in a press conference to discuss the medical liability crisis in the United States. They were also joined by patients whose lives were affected when they became victims of a health care crisis due to excessive medical liability costs.
Senator Hatch's remarks follow:
"As we have heard today, we have a crisis in our country, a crisis that is preventing patients from accessing high quality health care and, in some cases preventing them from accessing any health care at all; a crisis that is driving doctors out of practice, a crisis that is needlessly increasing the cost of health care for every American.
"Out-of-control medical litigation and frivolous law suits are causing medical liability insurance premiums to skyrocket and forcing some insurance companies to stop providing this insurance.
"Doctors who are unable to obtain affordable insurance, are leaving some states and in some cases are retiring from practice altogether.
"This leaves patients who need the care the most, pregnant women, trauma victims, and often the indigent, without the care they need and deserve.
"And that's not all. Out-of-control medical litigation forces doctors to practice defensive medicine, ordering tests and procedures in order to avoid frivolous law suits. Those tests and procedures increase health care costs and they increase risk.
"Eliminating the frivolous lawsuits and the cost of defensive medicine will improve access to care, improve the quality of care, and reduce health care costs.
"According to the Department of Health and Human Services, reforms such as those the President and I support will reduce Federal government costs by at least $28 billion and health care costs for all Americans by $60 billion.
"This is a national problem and it requires a national solution.
"As many of you will recall, we debated, and passed, medical litigation relief in the Commonsense Product Liability and Legal Reform Act debate back in 1995. Unfortunately, the language we passed was stripped from the bill in conference. Today, the problem is even worse and the need for relief is even greater.
"I am happy to report that the Senate Judiciary Committee, in concert with the HELP committee, will hold hearings on this very important issue. I say let's give the American people what they want, what they need, and what they deserve. Let's put some sense into the system by passing Medical Litigation Improvement legislation this year in the 108th Congress that enables patients to access their Doctors and Doctors to provide high quality cost-effective medical care."