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Montana hearing on HB195 pits providers's concerns about access against trial lawyers's objections to damage caps
Summary
The Senate Business, Labor, and Economic Affairs Committee heard competing testimony on House Bill 195, which would raise Montana's non-economic-damages cap from $250,000 to $300,000 then to $500,000 by 2029 and index it by 2% annually; proponents said the change would protect rural access to care, opponents said caps undermine victims' rights and may be arbitrary or unconstitutional.
Representative Bill Mercer, sponsor of House Bill 195, told the Senate Business, Labor, and Economic Affairs Committee the bill would modernize Montana's 1995 cap on non-economic damages in medical malpractice cases and reduce the statute's exposure to constitutional challenge. "The 1995 cap ... has remained at $250,000 for this entire period of time," Mercer said, arguing that phased increases and a 2% indexing rule would be "a prudent change."
Proponents at the hearing—doctors, hospital executives and business groups—urged the committee to pass the bill to preserve access to care in rural communities and to stabilize malpractice insurance markets. "I've handled over a 150 cases before the Montana medical legal panel," attorney Sean Goichiea said, describing plaintiff demands and asserting that large non-economic awards can threaten providers and local hospitals. Jean Branscum, chief executive officer of the Montana Medical Association, said materials distributed to the committee show the bill raises the cap to $300,000 immediately and then by…
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