This Key Vote Alert!letter was sent to all members of the U.S. House of Representatives in support of H.R. 1215, the Protecting Access to Care Act of 2017. This legislation would make much needed reforms to the nation's medical liability system.
June 26, 2017TO THE MEMBERS OF THE U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES:The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the U.S. Chamber Institute forLegal Reform (ILR) urge you to support H.R. 1215, the “Protecting Access toCare Act of 2017” and oppose any weakening or hostile amendments that maybe offered. The Chamber will consider including votes related to the bill in the2017 How They Voted scorecard. H.R.1215 would help reduce unnecessaryhealthcare spending caused by a clearly broken medical liability system.Medical liability continues to be an area in need of reform. Excessive costsincurred by litigating baseless lawsuits, which encourage defensive medicine, affectall Americans and cost the federal government billions of dollars in healthexpenditures. These costs have also made it harder for high-risk medical specialtypractitioners to obtain reasonably priced medical liability insurance coverage in manyparts of the country. As a result, some hospitals have been forces to close their doorscompletely or discontinue providing of some types of procedures, forcing patients totravel further, sometimes across state lines, for medical services, and in somecircumstances forego needed care.The costs associated with our current medical liability system also negativelyimpact American jobs. As healthcare costs increase, employers are forced to limitwage growth and hiring. Furthermore, companies are hesitant to locate and hire inareas with medical provider shortages, as it is difficult to attract and maintainnecessary talent in these areas.H.R. 1215 would make many reforms that would help reduce these excessivecosts while allowing patients who were injured by negligent care to recover all oftheir economic losses, such as medical bills and lost wages. The bill would alsoallow for the recovery of reasonable non-economic damages. The Chamber and ILRurge you to support this legislation and oppose any hostile or weakeningamendments.
