Common Sense Medical Malpractice Reform Act of 2003
Latest action · Feb 14, 2003 Referred to the Subcommittee on Health, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Chairman.
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedJan 8, 2003
- Passed HouseNot reached
- Passed SenateNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
(Sec. 3) Establishes a statute of limitations for health care liability actions of one year from the date on which the alleged injury was discovered or should reasonably have been discovered, but in no case more than three years after the date the alleged injury occurred.
(Sec. 4) Makes a defendant in any health care liability action liable only for the amount of noneconomic damages attributable to such defendant. Limits total noneconomic damages for an injury to $250,000.
Outlines requirements for, and limitations on, the award of punitive damages. Permits periodic payments of any damages awarded for future economic and noneconomic loss exceeding $50,000.
Permits defendants to introduce evidence of collateral source payments.
(Sec. 5) Specifies limits to contingent fees.
(Sec. 6) Declares that any ADR used to resolve a health care liability action or claim shall contain provisions for a statute of limitations, noneconomic damages, joint and several liability, punitive damages, a collateral source rule, periodic payments, and limitations on contingent fees which are identical to the provisions of this Act.
Cosponsors
Members who signed on, in the order they did.
Committees 2
Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.
| Chamber | Committee | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| House | Judiciary Committee | Referred Jan 8, 2003 |
| House | Energy and Commerce Committee | Referred Jan 8, 2003 |
| Health Subcommittee | Referred Feb 14, 2003 |
Actions 3
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Feb 14, 2003Referred to the Subcommittee on Health, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Chairman.
- Jan 8, 2003Introduced in House
- Jan 8, 2003Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
Titles 2
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- To establish limits on medical malpractice claims, and for other purposes.
- Short Titles as Introduced
- Common Sense Medical Malpractice Reform Act of 2003
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Health.
- Accident insurance
- Alternative dispute resolution
- Bribery
- Business records
- Commerce
- Crime and Law Enforcement
- Damages
- Department of Health and Human Services
- Disability insurance
- Disabled
- Drug approvals
- Drug industry
- Drugs
- Economics and Public Finance
- Evidence (Law)
- Federal employees
- Federal officials
- Federal preemption
- Finance and Financial Sector
- Fraud
- Government liability
- Government liability (International law)
- Government Operations and Politics
- Government paperwork
- Health
- Health insurance
- Indexing (Economic policy)
- International Affairs
- Labeling
- Labor and Employment
- Law
- Legal fees
- Liability (Law)
- Limitation of actions
- Medical malpractice
- Medical supplies
- Misconduct in office
- Packaging
- Products liability
- Punitive damages
- Social Welfare
- State laws
- Workers' compensation
Text 1
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Jan 8, 2003Introduced in House
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.