Health law board repeal bill raises concerns with trial lawyers

The powerful trial lawyers' lobby has come out in force against a bill to repeal the healthcare reform law's cost-cutting board because of the way it's paid for, possibly depriving House Republicans of a unique chance to deal a bipartisan blow to President Obama ahead of the November election.

To pay for their repeal of the Independent Payment Advisory Board (IPAB), House leaders have proposed coupling it with legislation capping medical malpractice damages when it comes up for a vote next week. Tort reform has long been a Republican priority, but linking the two bills is likely to cause a number of defections among the 20 Democratic co-sponsors of IPAB repeal while diluting the GOP's message about the unelected board's lack of accountability.

"House Leadership has proposed to pay for … a bill that proponents say will restore accountability and protect patients' rights — by attaching … a bill that will strip away patients' legal rights and limit accountability in the health care industry," said a spokeswoman for the American Association for Justice, formerly the Association of Trial Lawyers of America.

The tort reform bill, introduced by Rep. Phil Gingrey (R-Ga.), has already cleared the House Judiciary and Energy and Commerce committees. It would cap non-economic damages at $250,000; create a safe harbor from punitive damages for products that meet Food and Drug Administration safety requirements; and put in place a three-year statute of limitations for medical malpractice claims.

Republicans. for their part. argue that tort reform will achieve the cost-cutting goals of the IPAB by cutting doctors' malpractice costs and reducing defensive medicine. The bill would cut federal healthcare spending by $48 billion over 10 years and reduce the deficit by $57 billion, according to the Congressional Budget Office, more than enough to cover the $3 billion cost of repealing the IPAB.

They argue that medical malpractice meets Democrats' request for a pay-for that didn't involve cutting provisions of the healthcare reform law. And they point out that Obama in last year's State of the Union address said he would be willing to look at Republican ideas to bring down the cost of healthcare, such as medical liability reform. 

"We hope Congressional Democrats will be open to this idea as well," said a spokeswoman for the Energy and Commerce Committee.

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