BY SANDY THEIS
Enquirer Columbus Bureau
DUBLIN, Ohio -- Bob Taft, the Republican candidate for governor, endorsed a key part of his chief rival's plan to reform managed health care Tuesday. For months, Mr. Taft has supported proposals that would allow patients harmed by HMOs to sue them, but said he had not decided whether damages should be capped.
On Tuesday, however, he said he supports Democrat Lee Fisher's proposal that would cap damages at $500,000.
While Mr. Taft's announcement places him at odds with congressional Republicans -- they have called for limiting most damages to $250,000 -- he joins a growing number of political leaders scrambling to respond to rising public resentment over managed care.
Mr. Fisher has made managed-care reform the most visible issue in his campaign for governor so far.
Last month, he outlined a plan to promote greater access to more doctors, give patients the right to appeal an HMO's decision to deny care to an impartial tribunal, allow women to choose a gynecologist as their primary care provider and allow patients to sue HMOs if they are harmed by an HMO's decision to deny care. Most HMOs are exempt by federal law from patient liability claims.
Mr. Fisher also has launched a petition drive to pressure the Republican-controlled General Assembly to enact his "Patients' Bill of Rights" before the Nov. 3 election. Mr. Taft offered no explanation for his turnabout on the issue of damages and insisted that he shares Mr. Fisher's concerns over managed care.
"As I've said before, we are working on our own Patients' Bill of Rights proposal," Mr. Taft said. "We've been working for a number of weeks on this proposal, and we will be coming out later this summer with a comprehensive program that will deal with the abuses of managed care -- about which I have been as concerned as my opponent -- and it also will deal with issues of access to care." Mr. Taft made his comments after a news conference called to announce a plan for a statewide discount card for children.
Two protesters crashed the event, each waving a sign that called on Mr. Taft to endorse Mr. Fisher's bill of rights. Both said they were affiliated with the Ohio Democratic Party. One collected signatures for the petition drive.
Alan Melamed, a spokesman for the Fisher campaign, said he welcomed Mr. Taft's comments but doubted his sincerity. "Yesterday he was saying one thing, and tomorrow he'll be saying another," Mr. Melamed said.
He said Mr. Taft has previously criticized the Fisher plan as "too cumbersome" and "too broad," but now appears to have endorsed most, if not all, of it.
Mr. Taft declined to elaborate on his comments.
Mr. Taft, a Cincinnati native, is a former Hamilton County commissioner and state legislator. He is completing his second term as Ohio secretary of state.
Mr. Fisher, a Cleveland lawyer, is a former Ohio attorney general. The two are competing for the chance to succeed Republican Gov. George Voinovich, who is constitutionally barred from seeking a third consecutive term.
