Amendments to a proposed expansion of New York’s wrongful-death law have done little to persuade opponents of the measure.
State lawmakers this month reintroduced a version of the measure that aims to make it easier for a person to claim losses when a loved one dies. If made law, emotional distress would be covered under the wrongful death provision and a wider pool of people would be able to bring claims in wrongful death cases.
Gov. Kathy Hochul vetoed the legislation amid objections from medical groups, business organizations and local government officials who worried the measure would lead to higher insurance premiums and a spate of lawsuits.
A revamped version of the bill drafted this month was intended to address some of the concerns raised by Hochul in his veto message issued this year. The new bill limits payouts, has a shorter statute of limitations and provides a clearer definition of who is eligible to file wrongful death claims.
Supporters have included relatives of those killed in a racially motivated attack last year at a Buffalo supermarket.
But this week, the New York State Medical Society became the latest group to voice its continued opposition given the impact it could have on insurance costs and health care more broadly.
“These costs would cause significant damage to our health care safety net, imposing staggering new costs on our hospitals, driving doctors out of state, and exacerbating the patient access to care problems we face, especially in underserved areas. ” said the group. “Studies have shown that allowing the award of non-economic damages in wrongful death lawsuits, as this bill would, will increase medical liability costs for hospitals and doctors by nearly 40 percent when they already face outrageously high medical liability insurance costs. far exceeding any other state in the country.”
The Medical Society, along with a number of health care groups, wrote in an opposition letter to lawmakers that the new bill has done little to address their concerns.
“We have great sympathy for the grieving families that this legislation seeks to help,” the group said. “However, the current legislation is completely one-sided. To protect our patients, any legislation to expand costly lawsuits must be comprehensive and balanced to help prevent the enormous negative impact this bill would have on our system healthcare”.
