Cincinnati.Com
NKY.COM  |  ENQUIRER  |  CIN WEEKLY  |  Classifieds  |  Cars  |  Homes  |  Jobs  |  Help
Currently:
53°F
Mostly Cloudy
Weather | Traffic
The Enquirer
HOME
NEWS
ENTERTAINMENT
SPORTS
REDS
BENGALS
LOCAL GUIDE
MULTIMEDIA
ARCHIVES
SEARCH
 
 TODAY'S ENQUIRER 
 Front Page 
-- Local News 
 Sports 
 Business 
 Editorials 
 Tempo 
 Home Style 
 Travel 
 Health 
 Technology 
 Weather 
 Back Issues 
 Search 
 Subscribe 

 SPORTS 
 Bearcats 
 Bengals 
 High School 
 Reds 
 Xavier 

 VIEWPOINTS 
 Jim Borgman 
 Columnists 
 Readers' views 

 ENTERTAINMENT 
 Movies 
 Dining 
 Horoscopes 
 Lottery Results 
 Local Events 
 Video Games 

 CINCINNATI.COM 
 Giveaways 
 Maps/Directions 
 Send an E-Postcard 
 Coupons 
 Visitor's Guide 

 CLASSIFIEDS 
 Jobs 
 Cars 
 Homes 
 Obituaries 
 General 
 Place an ad 

 HELP 
 Feedback 
 Subscribe 
 Search 
 Newsroom Directory 




 
Wednesday, November 13, 2002

Bills limiting malpractice awards gain momentum



By Jim Siegel
Gannett Columbus Bureau

COLUMBUS - A bill limiting what patients or their families can collect in malpractice lawsuits could be voted out of the Ohio Senate as early as this week.

Hearings on a bill that would cap pain-and-suffering awards in malpractice cases at $300,000 started up again Tuesday, the first day back for lawmakers since late spring.

Senate President Richard Finan, R-Evendale, said the bill is scheduled for a vote Thursday, but he would not offer any predictions on the likelihood of that happening.

To get things moving in the House, Rep. Tim Grendell, R-Chesterland, is expected to introduce an identical bill today.

While there has been some opposition in the House, Speaker Larry Householder, R-Glendford, said Tuesday he doesn't see any major obstacles to passing the bill, which Gov. Bob Taft wants on his desk by the end of the year.

Ohio doctors see the bill as relief from skyrocketing insurance premiums.

The issue of malpractice reform permeated the recent campaigns for two seats on the Supreme Court. The Ohio State Medical Association encouraged doctors to vote for the GOP candidates for the court. They are hoping the candidates, both elected Nov. 5, will uphold any legislation that limits damage awards. In 1999 the court overturned similar legislation.

"I don't think there is any reason why we can't (pass the legislation)," said Sen. Jay Hottinger, R-Newark, a member of the Senate committee hearing the bill. "We know what the issues are, and that is not going to change."

At a Senate committee Tuesday, doctors, lawyers and insurance representatives argued whether caps would have affect insurance premiums.

Lawrence Smarr, president of the Physician Insurers Association of America, told the committee that 70 percent of malpractice cases are dismissed, and of those that go to trial, doctors win 80 percent of the time.

But this "wasteful system" costs insurers tens of thousands of dollars in legal expenses, regardless of whether a case is won or lost, he said.

He said "runaway" jury awards "are drawing the system to the brink."

Meanwhile, Stephen Chappelear, president of the Ohio State Bar Association, urged lawmakers not to rush to action. He questioned whether any statistics link jury awards to the recent spike in insurance premiums.

John Lancione, a Cleveland malpractice attorney, held up an X-ray of a client's stomach, clearly showing the hemostat - a clamp-like surgical tool - left inside him after an operation.

He said the bill shifts the burden from responsible physicians to innocent victims.

But without the bill, physicians will be forced to abandon their practices, said Brian Batchelder, a Mount Gilead physician and president of the Ohio Academy of Family Physicians.




TOP STORIES
Return of festival seating is no problem
ODOT won't back Fox interchange
Web site compares nursing-home data

IN THE TRISTATE
Are health care costs killing you?
Director ready for challenges
City `jock tax' proposal may be in home stretch
Bills limiting malpractice awards gain momentum
City sued for banning displays
UC professor to lead Cincinnati NAACP chapter
Obituary: Betty DeWert
Tristate A.M. Report

ENQUIRER COLUMNISTS
SMITH-AMOS: Pursuing your dream
BRONSON: Veterans Day
KORTE: City Hall
HOWARD: Some Good News

BUTLER, WARREN, CLERMONT
Woman with HIV guilty of soliciting
Deerfield board lambasted
Judge denies a lower bond for officer accused in baby's death
Loveland, residents face off over zoning at historic site
Family angered by decision to delay vehicular homicide trial
Mason approves new benefits
Springboro money tight

OHIO
Warnings saved lives

KENTUCKY
Complex named for Cappel
Family outing detailed
GOP courting Boone's Moore
Study: No evidence of racial profiling
Patton grand jury faces pile of paper
Court weighs if Victor's `Secret' hurts Victoria's

 

Latest Headline News
Updated Every 30 Minutes
AP TOP HEADLINE NEWS

Iraqi Official: 150,000 Civilians Dead

Sen. Allen Concedes Defeat in Virginia

Bush, Pelosi Hold White House Talks

Massive Recall of Acetaminophen Underway

Mubarak Warns Against Hanging Saddam

Bolton Unlikely to Win Senate Approval

AP: Startling Findings in Tillman Probe

Ed Bradley of '60 Minutes' Dies at 65

U.S. Rises in Auto Reliability Ratings

49ers Look to Relocate New Stadium



Cincinnati.Com
Search our site by keyword:  
Search also: News | Jobs | Homes | Cars | Classifieds | Obits | Coupons | Events | Dining
Movies/DVDs | Video Games | Hotels | Golf | Visitor's Guide | Maps/Directions | Yellow Pages

  CINCINNATI.COM  |  NKY.COM  |  ENQUIRER  |  CIN WEEKLY  |  Classifieds  |  Cars  |  Homes  |  Jobs  |  Help


Search | Questions/help | News tips | Letters to the editors | Subscribe
Newspaper advertising | Web advertising | Place a classified | Circulation

Copyright 1995-2007. The Cincinnati Enquirer, a Gannett Co. Inc. newspaper.
Use of this site signifies agreement to terms of service updated 12/19/2002.