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Congress ill on
patients' bill passage
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Release Date:
05/29/00
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Republican and Democratic
negotiators working on legislation to give
patients more protections against HMOs have met
with considerable friction in conference
committee over whether patients should get
expanded rights to sue health plans if they are
hurt when denied care, AP reports
said.
Republicans claim they are the only
party at the negotiating table to make
concessions in the deliberations, while the
Democrats say they have offered some concessions
to GOP concerns about giving the federal
government more regulatory power over health
plans at the expense of state patient protection
laws.
If a deal isn't reached in the week
following the Memorial Day, Sen. Edward Kennedy,
D-Mass. said the Democrats may give up on
negotiations.
The Senate bill doesn't
expand lawsuits and is heavily favored by
Republicans. Many party members fear expanded
lawsuit privileges will cause premiums to soar
and prompt businesses to drop health plans for
workers rather than face expensive lawsuits.
Democrats say HMOs must be held legally
accountable for their care
decisions.
5.29.00
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