For Release
May 4, 2005

Contact:
Amber Hard (IL), 847-400-7696
Laurie Beacham (NY), 917-847-6000

MEDICAL MALPRACTICE SURVIVORS
TRAVEL TO SPRINGFIELD

Patients Ask Legislators to Protect Victims' Rights

Springfield – As the state Legislature begins moving quickly on legislation to address Illinois’ high medical malpractice insurance rates, more than 20 victims and their families from around the state will be in Springfield on May 4th and 5th to voice their strong opposition to the effort to strip away patients’ rights by placing caps on compensation for those injured by medical malpractice. 

The caps are being promoted through a deceptive new public relations campaign by the US Chamber of Commerce.  These families have suffered devastating consequences from negligent medical care. This week’s activities are being organized by the Center for Justice & Democracy, a non-profit, non-partisan consumer group that focuses on protecting access to the civil justice system.

Debi Surlas from Aurora said, “Some of us or our family members have lost limbs, suffered brain damage or blindness, or even died. It is wrong for Springfield politicians to decide how much our injuries are worth.  That is the role of juries, and patients should not be stripped of their constitutional rights to have a jury decide fair compensation.”

The House and Senate are both moving quickly to vote on medical malpractice legislation that stalled last session.  The bills, sought by hospitals and insurers and backed heavily by the US Chamber of Commerce, propose caps on compensation for medical malpractice victims, which would devastate those who are most severely injured by negligent doctors.  Although caps have passed in over 20 states, they have not reduced malpractice premiums.

“Caps on damages will not lower the high cost of health care, or the high premiums physicians pay for insurance,” said Joanne Doroshow, Executive Director of the Center for Justice and Democracy.  “What they will do is devastate victims of medical malpractice and their families.”

“There are other, better, legislative proposals to reduce malpractice rates that would reduce premiums without taking away the rights of injured people.   One such option is regulation of Illinois’ out of control malpractice insurers,” continued Doroshow.  “Illinois has the most anti-consumer insurance regulatory law in the country.  What’s more, it is one of the few states in the country that shields insurers from public scrutiny of their ratemaking process.  Another way to solve the malpractice problem is to better discipline physicians who repeatedly injure patients.  An estimated 1,892 to 4,214 Illinois residents die every year from preventable medical errors in hospitals alone.  These types of proposals have worked in other states to lower premiums.” 

Suzanne Cervantes from Matteson stated, “Legislators should reduce malpractice premiums by reducing the astonishing amount of malpractice. People who experience medical malpractice are innocent victims and should not be re-injured by damage caps.”

“We are making this trip to help other medical malpractice victims. Many of our own legal proceedings are over, so we don’t stand to personally benefit from fighting this legislation. But having experienced what we have, we know how inadequate and harmful a one-size-fits-all cap on compensation would be for injured victims. We feel compelled to do what we can to prevent such a law from passing,” said Cervantes.

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