The Howell Decision: Is it Worse for Plaintiffs than MICRA?
The Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act (MICRA) was passed in 1975 and limits non-economic damages (pain, suffering and death of a loved one) in California medical malpractice cases to $250,000.00. Prior to December 1975, juries were free to weigh all evidence and award an amount of non-economic damages appropriate for the injury to the victim.
The $250,000.00 cap on non-economic damages has never been re-evaluated since its imposition in 1975 and, due to inflation, is now less than $70,000 in 1975 dollars. As if this wasn’t outrageous enough on its own, MICRA also served to alter the collateral source rule.
“Under the traditional collateral source rule, a jury, in calculating a plaintiff’s damages in a tort action, does not take into consideration benefits, such as medical insurance or disability payments, which the plaintiff has received from sources other than the defendant, i.e., collateral sources, to cover losses resulting from the injury. Cal. Civ. Code § 3333.1 [MICRA] alters this rule in medical malpractice cases. Under § 3333.1(a), a medical malpractice defendant is permitted to introduce evidence of such collateral source benefits received by or payable to the plaintiff; when a defendant chooses to introduce such evidence, the plaintiff may introduce evidence of the amounts he has paid, in insurance premiums, for example, to secure the benefits. Although § 3333.1(a), does not specify how the jury should use such evidence, the legislature apparently assumed that in most cases the jury would set plaintiff’s damages at a lower level because of its awareness of plaintiff’s net collateral source benefits. “ Fein v. Permanente Medical Group, (1985) 38 Cal. 3d 137, 164-165
Thus, MICRA served to both severely limit the non-economic damages recoverable by plaintiffs in medical malpractices cases and limit the amounts recovered by plaintiffs whom were responsible enough to have procured insurance to guard against losses. Fortunately, MICRA allows plaintiffs who had health insurance to recover the costs incurred in procuring such a benefit, in the form of amounts paid in insurance premiums.
Recently, the California Supreme Court has issued another blow to the collateral source rule and to responsible plaintiffs. In Howell v. Hamilton Meats and Provisions, Inc., (2011) 52 Cal. 4th 541, the Court held that a plaintiff could recover as damages for her past medical expenses no more than her medical providers had accepted as payment in full from plaintiff and her health insurer.
Unlike MICRA, which permits plaintiffs to introduce evidence regarding expenses incurred in procuring their insurance, plaintiffs in non-medical malpractice personal injury cases receive no such benefit. Thus, under Howell (supra), defendants receive the benefit of plaintiff’s thrift in being liable for greatly reduced medical expenses without having to reimburse plaintiffs for the (often substantial) costs of procuring such a benefit.
As it relates to the effect on the collateral source rule, the recent Howell (supra) ruling is potentially more damaging to plaintiffs than MICRA.
Under MICRA, a perpetrator of medical malpractice receives the benefit of lower medical damages if the victim had health insurance; however, he must reimburse the victim her costs of procuring such insurance.
Under Howell, one causing injuries to others receives the benefit of lower medical damages if the victim had health insurance and, as an added bonus, does not have to reimburse the victim of procuring such insurance.
Sadly, Howell is a win-win for those causing injuries to others in California.
We, at Heiting & Irwin specialize in personal injury cases and are on the cutting edge of personal injury law in California. While this decision is upsetting, we are undeterred in making sure our clients are fully compensated for their injuries.
