House Rejects Medical Malpractice Bill

by Associated Press (May 7th, 2007 @ 2:19pm)

The House on Monday narrowly rejected a medical malpractice bill previously approved by the Senate to make it harder to successfully sue emergency medical providers for alleged malpractice.

The House voted 28-to-28 on the bill, with 31 "yes" votes need for approval by the 60-member chamber.

The change would make it harder to prove a claim of negligent care, and supporters say that would help deter frivolous lawsuits and also reduce litigation expenses that contribute to high liability insurance costs for physicians and other medical providers.

Opponents argued that the change would deprive many Arizonans of the chance to recover damages for medical negligence.