State Deals on Medical Malpractice, Fights on Guns

By vouchey in News on May 26, 2005 6:13PM

Without going to a press conference to take credit for the big news, last night Democratic leaders in Springfield announced a deal on medical malpractice insurance caps. Earlier in the day Governor Blagojevich vowed to veto legislation calling for destruction of gun purchase background check records. The legislature's adjournment is scheduled for tomorrow, and the pressure is on to make deals so everyone can go home on time.

The possibility of a extra-long session hangs low over heads in Springfield, since last summer the session stretched into extra months, because of a budget stalemate. This session pressure has been on for a med-mal reform bill, as doctor (especially OB-GYN and neurosurgeon) insurance costs have been reaching above $120k annually, and docs have been threatening to leave the state. Also, everybody looks like a chump when sessions go long. Legislators look like they can't work together, and since most of them have second jobs outside of government, their regular lives stay on hold.

As a fundraising issue, med-mal damage caps has been a big moneymaker for both parties. Over recent years hospitals and insurance companies have given hundreds of thousands of dollars to Republicans to encourage caps, and trial attorneys have given similar amounts to Democrats to avoid caps. It will be interesting what happens to that money flow for future campaigns.