| In fact there was no shortage to drive the need for reform a decade ago! But now we discover that a doctor shortage is indeed upon us, in spite of the malpractice free environment Perry and the repubs created while Democrats thrashed about helplessly and the average citizen just knew that this was a BIG problem. I mean the media said so and so did Perry et. al.
This year, the leg continued their assault on consumer rights:
Loser-Pays Bill Clears Texas House
The bill enacts a modified loser-pays rule that allows winning parties to recover litigation costs in breach of contract suits or if a judge grants a motion to dismiss. (On the floor, Creighton offered an amendment, which was accepted, that would make it only apply in situations in which parties have not already made an contractual attorneys' fees arrangement.) It directs the Texas Supreme Court to create a procedure for the early dismissal of certain civil claims and expedites the discovery process for cases with claims between $500 and $100,000. And, most objectionable to some Democrats and the plaintiff's bar, it contains a provision that awards attorneys' fees to defendants if they make an offer to settle, and it's turned down - if the jury finds for the plaintiff and makes an award less than 80 percent of the initial settlement offer.
Current law allows defendants to recover attorneys' fees in that scenario - but it limits the amount defendants can recover to less than whatever the plaintiff finally wins. Creighton's legislation removes that limit.
For example, if a defendant made a settlement offer of $100,000 and the plaintiff rejected it, then went on to win the suit, but only with an award of $79,000, that would mean the plaintiff would have to pay the opposing party's legal costs - even if that added up to more than the final award. That prompted Rep. Craig Eiland, D-Galveston, to dub the legislation the "the loser pays and sometimes the winner pays, too" bill.
...
But many in the legal community believe loser-pays provisions obstruct all litigation - without regard to merit - and keep those with plausible legal claims from seeking justice. Civil rights advocates also say loser-pays rules unfairly target the poor because they add a greater financial risk to bringing litigation. And legal scholars aren't persuaded that a frivolous lawsuit problem even exists. According to Charles Silver, a professor at the University of Texas School of Law, no serious academic study outside of the context of securities class actions has found it to be an issue in the U.S.
There is a pattern here: Repubs claim a non-existent problem, provide a non-solution helpful to their sugar daddies and mommiies (corporations, Righteous Right, Tea Parties) , raise, stir and repeat.
Today this:
Funding for Texas doctor training at risk
Texas teaching hospitals are bracing for a big hit in the federal deficit-reduction plans under consideration, just a few weeks after the state Legislature slashed funding to the same doctor-training programs.
The cuts will exacerbate a crisis in which Texas, ranked 42nd in the number of physicians per population, loses potential doctors because the state doesn't have enough residency slots to train the medical students it pays to educate.
Congrads Rick, you finally have a doctor shortage crisis to confront. Maybe we can pray it away in August at your Pray-Palooza.
Oh, did you notice where malpractice friendly Texas ranks in the number of doctors relative to all the other states? That right 42th. But the malpractice reform was never intended to solve a doctor shortage was it Rick? It was a red herring to distract attention form the legislature's sweeping empowerment of corporations over consumers in law suits charging corporate fraud, misrepresentation, shoddy products or services. In the case of Texas, it was part of Rick Perry's paybacks to people like Jim Perry of Perry Homes. You sign away your right to sue when you sign on the dotted line. You must agree to binding arbitration if you have grievances about your new home.
In a one party state, bad things happen to ordinary people. They are not informed enough about complex policy games that make their lives harder . This lack of clarity is both intentional and malevolent. Who knew that reforming doctor malpractice suits would end up taking away your rights as a home buyer?
The people who should be helping average citizens in this highly complex and technical public issue environment are the opposition party and the press. In Texas, up to this point, both have failed us miserably . I mean the lies about doctor shortages and law suit abuses are over 10 years old. They get repeated because nobody, not the Texas Democratic Party, not the press drives a stalk their their black lying hearts.
Having solved the non-problem of a doctor shortage a decade ago with a non-solution we have seen the number of doctors in Texas go down for real, if unknown reasons. We didn't bother to pay attention to this problem because it had already been solved!
Now we add the impact of Perry's lies and budgeting tricks that have given us a 19 billion dollar hole in our state budget and we end up with the mess we now face - a current doctor shortage, a looming larger one and no money to pay for the real solution right before our eyes.
Ignorance , whatever its source, is so much more expensive than paying attention and trying to sort out the facts. It always is.... |
