OKLA. GOV. SIGNS TORT REFORM BILL:

After urging its passage, Oklahoma Governor Brad Henry signed into law on May 28, 2004, House Bill 2661, a measure that proponents dubbed “a comprehensive tort reform bill.” In addition to Gov. Henry, the bill was backed by Oklahoma health care professionals, including the Oklahoma State Medical Association, the Oklahoma Hospital Association, and the Oklahoma Association of Health Care Providers. The state Senate passed the bill after the governor, reform stakeholders and legislators hammered out the final details of a compromise package which was added to HB 2661. An announcement released by the governor’s office noted that in addition to protecting businesspeople and citizens from frivolous lawsuits, the legislation is designed to curb rising medical malpractice insurance rates that have been forcing many Oklahoma doctors to consider retiring from their practices. Among other things, HB 2661 would greatly reduce frivolous lawsuits with “loser pays” penalties, strengthen caps on medical malpractice damage awards and assist the Physicians Liability Insurance Company or PLICO, the entity that writes malpractice insurance policies for Oklahoma doctors. “I appreciate the hard work of all the stakeholders and urge state lawmakers to approve the agreement their negotiations produced,” said Gov. Henry. “We have an opportunity to defuse the crisis brewing in our health care community by implementing many tough reforms that will assist medical providers, businesspeople and consumers alike.” Not all legislators were happy with the bill, however. Senate Republican leaders stated that Oklahoma trial lawyers won a major victory in their fight against meaningful lawsuit reform with passage of HB 2661. “The very fact that every senator who has publicly opposed lawsuit reform voted for this bill proves that HB 2661 is a sham,” stated Sen. James A. Williamson, Senate Republican floor leader. “The trial lawyers have won a major victory.” Sen. Glenn Coffee, R-Oklahoma City added that, “HB 2661 is not a real lawsuit reform bill. It is not comprehensive, does very little to help doctors, and does nothing to stop the job losses in Oklahoma. Rank-and-file doctors will be furious when they find out that the state medical association leadership gave in to the trial lawyers for a bogus bill.” Among its myriad provisions the bill addresses attorney fees in class action lawsuits, authorizes sanctions for frivolous representations to the court, establishes a new cap on non-economic damages, adopts an “I’m sorry” rule that would allow a health care provider to utter an expression of sympathy without it being used against the provider in court, provides liability protection for landowners who host outdoor recreational events on their property, and imposes an 18-month moratorium on the financial requirements of cash-strapped Physicians Liability Insurance Co.