State house lawmakers have tentatively passed a controversial tort reform bill.
Senate Bill 33's Republican sponsors say capping non-economic damages for patients who're suing their doctors for malpractice would help create a friendlier climate for doctors to come to the Tar Heel state. They say the measure would rein in skyrocketing insurance costs for doctors. But Democratic representative Bill Faison- who's a well-known plaintiff's attorney- disputes that.
Bill Faison: "This bill is going to do absolutely nothing to help doctors in the state. Do you realize that their malpractice premiums have been going down over the last five years? They've gone down an average of two thousand dollars."
He says North Carolina has more doctors per capita than many other states. And he says they keep coming to seek jobs here at the state's hospitals and clinics.
