2004 Year in Review

Manzullo votes for legislation to reduce health care costs

(WASHINGTON) House Small Business Committee Chairman Don Manzullo (R-IL) this week voted for a legislative package that will reduce the surging cost of health care for Americans and help small business owners better provide health insurance to their employees and their families.

The package included bills to reform America's out-of-control medical liability system and to allow small employers to band together and purchase health insurance at group rates through national associations.

"The surging cost of health care has left 44 million Americans without coverage and threatened the ability of small businesses to expand and create jobs," Manzullo said.

"This week, the House has acted again to provide real options to reduce these surging costs. It's time for the Senate to put politics aside, endorse these measures, and give President Bush legislation he can sign to harness these out-of-control costs and allow small employers to put Americans back to work."

The House passed the medical liability bill (H.R. 4280) on Wednesday and the Association Health Plans bill (H.R. 4281) this afternoon.

H.R. 4280 would help resolve the medical liability crisis which has skyrocketed malpractice insurance and health care costs while forcing many doctors out of their medical fields. The bill would require a speedy resolution of claims by requiring a lawsuit filing within 3 years of injury. It would ensure maximum patient recovery by prohibiting attorneys from pocketing unreasonable percentages of a patient's award. It would allow patients to recover maximum economic damages such as medical expenses and loss of future earnings. It would also enact reasonable limits on non-economic damages (pain and suffering) to $250,000. The plan allows punitive damages to be the greater of two times the amount of economic damages awarded or $250,000. States with other limits, whether higher or lower, can continue to enforce those limits.

H.R. 4281 would create national Association Health Plans (AHPs), allowing small businesses to band together and purchase health insurance through national associations at group rates. Under the bill, groups such as the National Federal of Independent Business, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the National Restaurant Association could offer group health insurance to their member companies, allowing small businesses to enjoy the same economies of scale as large corporations.

Manzullo, who has cosponsored medical liability and AHP bills in the House, has held numerous hearings on America's health care cost crisis. Last month, he organized a series of nationwide health access forums to consider the plight of small employers and solutions to the crisis.

"They are desperate," Manzullo said. "Our entrepreneurs, whose ingenuity and hard work ethic have driven the American economy, have run out of options to battle this crisis. They need our help."

by  Editor, theCity1.com
May 17, 2004