The Illinois Supreme Court overturned a medical malpractice law on Thursday which was met with quick opposition from health care providers. The law put limits on the amount injured patients could receive for pain and suffering damages. Critics of the ruling acknowledged that the caps curbed elevated health care costs and made health insurance plans more affordable in Illinois.
The prior Illinois legislation put caps of $500,000 for non-economic damages filed against doctors and $1 million against hospitals. The Illinois Supreme Court believe that the law was in violation of the states constitution; specifically the constitution’s “separation of powers ” clause that does not allow the court to determine appropriate damages in cases.
The Chicago Tribune notes that the overturned law could make future health care rulings quite murky. And with looming health care and health insurance reform, who knows what factor yesterday’s ruling will become.
Critics disagree with the decision because they cite data which shows the malpractice caps kept health care costs low over the past few years. For example, before 2005, the costs of medical-liability insurance for health care providers kept escalating due to malpractice lawsuits. Physicians were leaving Illinois because they could not afford malpractice insurance. But since the law was enacted, the number of malpractice claims filed has declined — and believe it or not, so has the price of Illinois health insurance.
It’s also apparently a budding national trend — 11 out of 30 states have already overturned similar rulings according to The New York Times.