Today's Health Care Check-Up: - October 13, 2000

A Cap on Damages in Norwood-Ashcroft-McCain?

Supporters of the Norwood-Ashcroft-McCain bill claim there is a cap on damages in this newest version of the patients’ bill of rights. But the fact is this so-called cap is really not a cap at all. Punitive damages may be capped in federal court, but employers would still be subject to unlimited damage awards in at least 5 other ways:

• $5 million limit on punitive damages in federal court.
• Unlimited economic damages in federal court.
• Unlimited non-economic damages in federal court.
• Unlimited punitive damages in state court.
• Unlimited economic damages in state court.
• Unlimited non-economic damages in state court.

• There would be unlimited opportunities for class-action lawsuits to be filed against employers under both state and federal laws.

The Norwood-Ashcroft-McCain bill still does not protect employers from being hauled into court for providing health coverage to their employees. And it still does not effectively protect employers from ruinous unlimited lawsuits. In fact, the $5 million cap on punitive damages in federal court offers little comfort to the average small business owner who earns $40,000 a year and could still go bankrupt at the hands of trial lawyers.