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For the second time in less than a year, Senate Democrats on Tuesday blocked a White House-backed effort to impose strict caps on jury awards in medical malpractice cases. But Republicans vowed to bring the issue up again later in the year.
The backers of the measure, which would curb jury awards in medical liability cases against obstetricians and gynecologists, fell 12 votes short of the 60 necessary to have the bill considered by the Senate. The final vote, 48-45, fell mostly along party lines; the outcome was a foregone conclusion.
With doctors complaining that liability insurance premiums are forcing them out of business, Republicans have made malpractice law changes a central part of their agenda.
