Government
Ariz. tort reform signed into law
NEWS IN BRIEF — Posted May 16, 2005
Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano signed medical liability legislation last month that tightens rules on expert witness testimony and allows physicians to express sympathy to patients without having it used against them in court.
The Arizona Medical Assn., which supported the bill, also had proposed a provision that would have allowed the defense attorney to speak with any of the plaintiffs' previous treating physicians without the plaintiff's permission. But that provision was dropped from the bill's final version. The medical association plans to push for that change in 2006, and it is laying the groundwork for a lobbying effort to set a cap on noneconomic damages, officials said.
Note: This item originally appeared at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2005/05/16/gvbf0516.htm.
