CJ&D Releases Materials on Bush and Lawsuits: His Education and Health Plans: Myth vs. Reality

For Immediate Release:
March 23, 2001

Contact: Joanne Doroshow or Emily Gottlieb
212/267-2801

CENTER FOR JUSTICE & DEMOCRACY RELEASES MATERIALS ON BUSH AND LAWSUITS:

HIS EDUCATION AND HEALTH PLANS: MYTH VS. REALITY

New York, NY -- The Center for Justice & Democracy announced today the release of new materials to counter a barrage of misinformation coming out of the White House about lawsuits.

These releases come in conjunction with yesterday's introduction in the House of Bush's education package, which includes a radical provision to immunize teachers and school officials who hit children, and to penalize parents who sue unsuccessfully when their children are injured.

According to Center for Justice & Democracy Executive Director Joanne Doroshow, "Bush's endorsement of corporal punishment runs counter to the views of lawmakers in most states. There is a strong correlation between states that immunize teachers for corporal punishment and the number of children that are hit. There have been some egregious examples of disciplinary abuse in recent years, with principals and school districts culpable as well. Most teachers say that the best way to restore discipline in classrooms is not to immunize them from lawsuits but to reduce class size."

Bush's proposal comes on the heels of his March 20 announcement rejecting the bi-partisan "Patient's Bill of Rights," which allows injured patients to hold HMOs accountable in court. Bush is pushing for severe limits on punitive damages against HMOs that engage in the most egregious misconduct.

The Center for Justice & Democracy rips apart this proposal in a new "MYTHBUSTER!" entitled Bush vs. HMOs: Myth vs. Reality. Highlights include:

• With 98,000 patients killed per year in hospitals and with only one
  in eight even filing a claim for compensation, medical malpractice litigation in this country is far from frivolous.
• Despite the hype, juries are extremely conservative. Only 1.1 percent of injured medical malpractice victims are awarded punitive damages.
• "Capping" damages hurts exclusively the most seriously injured patients. Medical malpractice verdicts greater than $1 million are awarded in cases involving the most severe injuries: brain damage and paralysis.
• Medical malpractice costs make up only a tiny fraction of total health care costs (less than 1 percent); allowing patients to sue HMOs will add only miniscule additional costs, if any.