Feds Look to Further Limit Victim's Rights
In July, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill which limits the rights of patients injured by negligent doctors. The bill also limits the liability of drug companies and medical device manufacturers for putting dangerous products into the marketplace, and restricts actions against nursing homes and HMO’s.
Earlier this year, Gov. Blagojevich signed into law a medical malpractice bill that places caps on damage awards in malpractice actions. Signed under the guise of a lawsuit “crisis” in Illinois, the bill harms those injured who need compensation the most. Thankfully, the malpractice bill included controls on the insurance industry, and we shall see in the following years how these insurance companies have fabricated this “crisis” to fill their coffers.
Nonetheless, the federal bill passed in the U.S. House of Representatives places even further restrictions on the rights of the injured. And the bill does not stop with those injured by medical malpractice. The bill would also protect drug companies from full responsibility for putting dangerous drugs into the marketplace. For example, under the proposed bill, Merck’s liability for covering up the cardiovascular risks associated with Vioxx while spending hundreds of millions of dollars on direct to consumer advertising would by severely limited.
Clearly this bill is a slap in the face to consumers, and we encourage you to contact our Senators Richard Durbin and Barack Obama to express your disapproval to this bill.