RE: Support for H.R. 1704, the “Accessible Care by Curbing Excessive lawSuitS (ACCESS) Act”
Dear Representative Hudson:
As the Alliance of Specialty Medicine (Alliance), our mission is to advocate for sound federal health care
policy that fosters patient accessto the highest quality specialty care. As patient and physician advocates,
the Alliance writes in support of H.R. 1704, the “Accessible Care by Curbing Excessive lawSuitS (ACCESS)
Act”. This bill sets conditions for lawsuits arising from health care liability claims.
The Alliance supports meaningful medical liability reform that reduces growth in health care costs,
stabilizes professional liability insurance premiums, preserves access to specialty care, and encourages
physician engagement in meaningful quality improvement activities. Meaningful medical liability reform,
as outlined in the ACCESS Act, fully compensates patients for medical/economic damages, while placing a
$250,000 limit on noneconomic damages and making a defendant liable only for damages equal to his/her
share of responsibility; maximizes patient awards and discourages frivolous lawsuits through sliding scale
contingency fees; and eliminates double recovery by accounting for evidence of collateral source benefits
paid.
For these reasons, the Alliance extends our strong support for this important legislation.
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