U.S. Sen. John Cornyn (R) a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee is at it again. While he has yet to break through to the upper tier of party flackdom (think Jon Kyle), he certainly is consistently knocking on the door.
His official web site trumpets the news that the former Texas Attorney General cosponsored “two important bills aimed at providing patients with greater access to health care by enacting key civil justice reforms.”
Both The Medical Care Access Protection Act, S. 243 and The Healthy Mothers and Healthy Babies Access to Care Act, S. 244 will “increase health care access and decrease costs….” Wow! Is one the most doctrinaire conservatives growing some social conscience?
Ah…no.
Medical liability reform is the goal here.
“These important bills will increase health care access and decrease costs by limiting the effects of runaway frivolous lawsuits that are driving doctors out of practice,” Sen. Cornyn said. “In 2003, Texas put a model in place for the nation that has proven successful. Congress should act now to provide a national solution so that all Americans can benefit from medical liability reform….The current system greatly decreases hope for accessible and affordable health care in America. The time for that to change is now, so I hope we’ll see bipartisan support for these key bills.
http://cornyn.senate.gov/index.asp?f=record&lid=1&yid=1&rid=237286&pg=1Cornyn’s logic is thus:
1. Litigator are greedy
2. They bring frivolous law suites to slack their money lust
3. Noble insurance companies get hurt
4. To repair their unjust losses, insurance companies charge doctors higher premiums
5. Higher premiums drive doctors out of business
The evidence of this seen by this observer is at best anecdotal. One of the biggest motivations that insurance companies had in increasing premiums was to expand their float and try to undo the damage done to their investment portfolios 1999-2003.
Sure higher premiums increase the cost of doing business, but a key question is: What is the real reason a medical liability insurance company feels the need to increase its premiums?
Sen. Cornyn is sure he knows the answer.
