Bill Summary for Bill Number HB06-1282

Date: 02/21/2006

Final
BILL SUMMARY for HB06-1282

HOUSE COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY

Votes: View-->	Action Taken:
Prepared amendment L.001 (Attachment B). The moti Refer the bill to the Committee of the Whole. See SUBSTITUTE MOTION: Postpone the bill indefinitely	PASS TIE PASS

10:58 AM -- House Bill 06-1282

Representative Gardner, bill sponsor, explained the provisions of HB 06-1282 regarding out-of-pocket losses and expenses in civil suits. He explained the bill as amended by proposed amendment L.001 (Attachment B) that addresses the difference between what is billed by health care providers and what is paid to the provider and the fact that the difference cannot be collected or claimed as out-of-pocket losses by the patient as economic damages in a civil suit.

11:03 AM

Robert Schuetze, Colorado Trial Lawyers Association, spoke in opposition to the bill as drafted and to the effect the bill would have had on various entities in recovering losses. He also spoke in opposition to the proposed amendment and explained the problems the bill presents for health care entities in recovering costs. He also questioned the lack of specificity the bill provides on just how much a plaintiff or claimant would be required to pay to satisfy a claim for medical expenses. In response to committee questions, Mr. Schuetze indicated that doctors would be prevented from collecting the full value of their services. In addition, there would be future litigation on recovering future medical costs and the costs of future medical services. In response to a committee question regarding the language preventing a plaintiff or claimant from presenting evidence of medical expenses greater than the amount to satisfy the medical expense, Mr. Schuetze indicated that while there are numerous rules on evidence, there is no similar provision elsewhere in the law.

Representative Gardner and Mr. Schuetze responded to numerous committee questions regarding the bill's provisions.

11:26 AM

David Diepenbrolk, Colorado Trial Lawyers Association, spoke in opposition to the bill. He spoke to the number of tort filings in Colorado and spoke to the degree to which the number of filings indicates that the issue the bill addresses is not a big problem in Colorado (Attachment C and Attachment D).

11:31 AM

David Munch spoke in support of the bill and explained how insurance contracts work with patients and providers. He spoke to how hospitals provide discounted services under the terms of a contract and to the gap between what is charged for services and for what has been agreed to as payment in full by an insurance company. He compared those costs with what the actual service may cost.

11:35 AM

Chris Miller, Kennedy, Childs, and Fogg, spoke in support of the bill. He provided an example of a case in which a patient was charged for services, the insurance paid a certain amount, and a lawsuit that would have allowed the patient to collect the difference between what was paid and what was billed. In response to a committee question, Mr. Miller indicated that in that case, the judge did not allow the difference to be considered by the jury. Mr. Kennedy responded to committee questions.


BILL:	HB06-1282
TIME:	11:46:08 AM
MOVED:	Gardner
MOTION:	Prepared amendment L.001 (Attachment B). The motion carried on a 7-4 roll call vote.
SECONDED:	Clapp
		VOTE
	Boyd	Yes
	Cadman	Yes
	Clapp	Yes
	Decker	Yes
	Gardner	Yes
	Jahn	No
	Judd	Yes
	McGihon	No
	Witwer	Yes
	Carroll M.	No
	Carroll T.	No
Not Final YES: 7 NO: 4 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS

11:47 AM

Representative Gardner provided closing comments on the bill.


BILL:	HB06-1282
TIME:	11:48:28 AM
MOVED:	Witwer
MOTION:	Refer the bill to the Committee of the Whole. See substitute motion below.
SECONDED:	Gardner
		VOTE
	Boyd
	Cadman
	Clapp
	Decker
	Gardner
	Jahn
	Judd
	McGihon
	Witwer
	Carroll M.
	Carroll T.
Not Final YES: 0 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: SEE SUBSTITUTE MOTION


BILL:	HB06-1282
TIME:	11:48:44 AM
MOVED:	McGihon
MOTION:	SUBSTITUTE MOTION: Postpone the bill indefinitely. The motion carried on a 6-5 roll call vote.
SECONDED:	Carroll M.
		VOTE
	Boyd	Yes
	Cadman	No
	Clapp	No
	Decker	No
	Gardner	No
	Jahn	Yes
	Judd	Yes
	McGihon	Yes
	Witwer	No
	Carroll M.	Yes
	Carroll T.	Yes
Final YES: 6 NO: 5 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS