Government
Conn. governor signs tort reform bill
NEWS IN BRIEF — Posted Aug. 1, 2005
Connecticut Gov. M. Jodi Rell in July signed a medical liability reform bill into law. The new provisions do not include a cap on noneconomic damages that physicians say is necessary to temper medical liability insurance rates, but the law does change the way some things will be handled inside the courtroom and out.
Among the changes set to take effect Oct. 1:
- The court must review any noneconomic damage award of more than $1 million to determine whether it "shocks the sense of justice."
- Defendant physicians can inform the jury about any awards or damages a plaintiff recovered from other health care professionals.
- Plaintiffs cannot in court use any statements, affirmations, gestures or other conduct that expresses apology, sympathy or compassion as a physician's admission of guilt.
The law also requires that the Connecticut Dept. of Insurance commissioner by Jan. 1, 2006, develop a plan to keep the medical liability insurance industry viable. Also, if physicians' insurance rates do not reasonably decrease by Oct. 1, 2008, the state must establish a working group to look at the problem.
Note: This item originally appeared at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2005/08/01/gvbf0801.htm.
