TITLE
Recommendation to request City Council to oppose any bills or ballot measures that would weaken the Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act (MICRA), thereby increasing health care costs for state and local governments and limiting patient access to health care services;
Request City Attorney to draft a resolution in opposition to bills or ballot measures that would weaken the MICRA, thereby increasing health care costs for state and local governments and limiting patient access to health care services; and
Request that the City of Long Beach become an official, non dues paying member of Californians Allied for Patient Protection (CAPP), a coalition which is dedicated to supporting MICRA.
DISCUSSION
According to the California Medical Association, "the Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act of 1975 (MICRA) is a series of statutes crafted to ensure that injured patients are fairly compensated, medical liability rates are kept in check, and physicians and clinics can remain in practice treating patients."
When California Legislature enacted MICRA, it included several significant changes to the medical malpractice system in California. MICRA allows patients with justifiable medical malpractice claims to receive the following forms of compensation:
• Unlimited economic damages for past and future medical costs.
• Unlimited damages for lost wages, lifetime earning potential or any other economic losses.
• Unlimited punitive damages.
• Up to $250,000 for non-economic damages. Unlike economic damages, non-economic damages are inherently subjective and often difficult to verify and measure. MICRA's $250,000 ceiling on non-economic damages has proved effective in reducing and stabilizing medical liability insurance costs, which in turn has limited the rate of growth in health care costs and increased access to health care for all Californians.
California's Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act (MICRA) ensures injured patients receive fair compensation while also limiting frivolous and meritless lawsuits that increase costs for consumers, local governments and others. Under MICRA, patients are awarded all economic damages, such as all past and future lost wages and all past and future medical bills, and unlimited punitive damages. MICRA also allows patients to recover up to $250,000 in non-economic damages. This reasonable $250,000 cap on non-economic damages allows legitimate medical liability cases to move forward, but provides a disincentive for lawyers to pursue meritless claims which waste health care dollars and drive up health care costs unnecessarily.
Currently, there is a proposal filed for the November 2014 ballot to quadruple MICRA's non-economic damages cap to $1.1 million, which will make it easier and more lucrative for'; lawyers to file lawsuits against all health care providers, including state and local governments. State and local governments, including schools, cities, counties and special districts WOJ.Jld all be negatively impacted by increasing MICRA's cap because of increased costs to provide health and dental benefits for current and retired employees, and increased costs for local governments that operate clinics, hospitals and other health services and provide health care for Californians through Medi-Cal and other state-sponsored programs.
A recent review by California's former non-partisan legislative analyst found that increasing the MICRA non-economic damages cap from $250,000 to $1.1 million would impact state and local budgets by nearly $2 billion each year, including $173 million for cities; $297 for counties; $111 million for special districts, $1,70 million for K-12 schools; and $25 million for community colleges. The same study found that overall health care costs in California would go up by $9.9 billion annually, diverting those resources away from patient care. There is real concern that this change to MICRA will increase health care costs for everyone in California, and reduce or eliminate access to health care services for many California residents.
Therefore, I am asking the City of Long Beach to join other cities as well as the California State Association of Counties, California Special Districts Association, California Association of Public Hospitals and Health Systems, and more than 800 other organizations representing doctors, hospitals, nurses, community clinics, local governments, business and taxpayer groups, labor unions, EMTs and public safety in supporting Californians Allied for Patient Protection (CAPP), a coalition dedicated to supporting MICRA. In doing so, Long Beach would become an official, non-dues paying member of Californians Allied for Patient Protection (CAPP).
FISCAL IMPACT
There is no fiscal impact for this item.
SUGGESTED ACTION
Approve recommendation.
Respectfully Submitted,
DR. SUJA LOWENTHAL
COUNCILMEMBER, SECOND DISTRICT