Construction defect, medical malpractice plans hit obstacles in Legislature

CARSON CITY -- An Assembly-approved bill to let some patients seek unlimited damages in medical malpractice lawsuits was being held up in the Senate in apparent retaliation for an Assembly committee chairman's decision to sit on two Senate-passed construction defect bills.

Though no one had told him directly, Assembly Judiciary Chairman Bernie Anderson, D-Sparks, said he had heard that the Senate Judiciary Committee won't act on Assembly Bill 495 unless his committee passes Senate bills 337 and 349.

The Senate committee on Wednesday cancelled a scheduled hearing on the medical malpractice bill. And Anderson had not scheduled any hearings on the construction defect bills.

Under legislative rules, the bills must be approved by their respective committees by the end of business Friday or they cannot be passed during this Legislature.

The chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Sen. Terry Care, D-Las Vegas, said only that he spoke with Anderson earlier Wednesday about the medical malpractice bill, which passed the Democrat-controlled Assembly in April on a 26-15 party-line vote.

The proposal would lift the $350,000 cap on pain and suffering damages in lawsuits where doctors are found guilty of gross negligence.

The bill was drawn up in part by colonoscopy patients in Las Vegas who believe they were hurt by the deliberate negligence of doctors and now are being hurt by a system that limits their damages.

More than 50,000 patients at two now-closed outpatient clinics in Las Vegas were notified last year that they might have been exposed to blood-borne diseases because of shoddy injection practices by clinic staffers. Nine people contracted hepatitis C, and another 105 cases might be linked to the clinics.

Anderson said the bill is straightforward and will help these patients. He also acknowledged the testimony of some doctors who said the bill would lead to higher malpractice insurance rates and drive them out of Nevada.

"Keeping doctors in Nevada is one of our priorities, but what happened in my mind in the South was gross negligence," he said.

Trial lawyers support the medical malpractice bill and oppose the construction defect bills. Under SB337, which passed the Democrat-controlled Senate 20-0, the time limit for homeowners to bring lawsuits in some cases would be dropped from 10 to three years.

The other bill, which passed the Senate 19-1, changes the definition of a construction defect, requiring one to cause an "unreasonable risk of injury." It also prevents homeowners from getting legal fees if they win their case.

"How is the consumer protected by the bills that came over from the Senate?" he asked.

Contact reporter Ed Vogel at evogel@reviewjournal.com or 775-687-3901.