Bush urges tort reform, drug benefit

The president mentioned several health initiatives during his annual State of the Union speech.

By Geri Aston, AMNews staff. Feb. 10, 2003.

Washington -- In his State of the Union address, President Bush listed medical liability reform and creation of a Medicare outpatient prescription drug benefit as two health care priorities.

"Because of excessive litigation, everybody pays more for health care, and many parts of America are losing fine doctors," he said. "No one has ever been healed by a frivolous lawsuit. I urge Congress to pass medical liability reform."

The AMA applauded Bush's focus on tort reform.

"We are all threatened by a legal system that is out of control. Because of the sky-high cost of liability insurance, physicians throughout the country have been forced to limit their practices, stop delivering babies, and some are even leaving the practice of medicine completely," said AMA President Yank D. Coble Jr., MD.

Regarding Medicare, Bush said beneficiaries happy with the traditional program should be able to stay in it. But beneficiaries should have the choice to enroll in a health plan that offers prescription drug coverage, he added.

Bush said his budget would include $400 billion over the next decade to reform and strengthen Medicare.

Democrats criticized his plan as an attempt to privatize Medicare by forcing seniors into HMOs. "He's cleverly using the promise of a meager drug benefit as a bribe to push Medicare beneficiaries into second-rate, low-quality health plans -- putting seniors at the mercy of HMOs and big drug companies," said Rep. Fortney "Pete" Stark (D, Calif.).