Senate Rejects Caps on Attorney’s Fees, Snubs Healthcare Reform

Yesterday the U.S. Senate voted AGAINST lowering the cost of healthcare reform and FOR their fellow attorneys. By a 2/3 margin (32-66) they rejected the amendment proposed by Senator John Ensign (R, NV) which would have limited plaintiff’s attorneys to a reasonable and customary fee.

The amendment would not have capped the amount of a judgment, only the portion which an attorney could get out of the judgment. The cap? One third of the first $150,000 and 25% of everything above that. Sounds like a pretty sweet deal for the attorney, even at that rate! How many of us would like to get $50,000 for one case, let alone another 25% of everything above $150k?

Why did they do that? The Democrats claim their reason is that it wasn’t fair and even because it didn’t put a cap on the defense lawyers’ fees. Talk about frivolous excuses! So what was the real reason? Their buddies are getting rich by suing doctors. That’s why. How serious can they be about healthcare reform when they refuse to even allow such a generous and reasonable cap? The weak excuse says all we really need to know about how much this Senate really cares about saving us money or enacting meaningful healthcare reform.

Since this is what Senators do when they get together on a Sunday to address health care overhaul legislation, one is left to wonder what they do the rest of the time. What is painfully obvious is that we cannot afford to wait on the Senate to enact meaningful, functional healthcare reform. Creating new ways to tax people to pay for a social welfare program that includes healthcare, doesn’t address the real causes of runaway costs. It keeps us paying those costs, while asking the government to pick up the tab. That’s not Reform by anyone’s definition! At the very best, it’s an expansion of government; clearly a very inefficient means of administering funds and services.

The Senate may refuse to do something about it, but that doesn’t mean you have to wait until you fall prey to a greedy lawyer. You CAN fight back against frivolous lawsuits! We all know that preventative treatment is best. Become a Medical Justice member. Medical Justice protects physicians. And the trial attorneys know that we’ll fight back. Don’t wait until you’re served. Contact Medical Justice today!