Patient Safety Act on the California Ballot

Doctors are around to care for our children, our family members, and us. But sometimes, they don’t take proper care and that can result in catastrophic injuries and sometimes even death.

In 2003 two young California children, by the names of Troy and Lana Pack, were killed in a car crash caused by a driver who was over prescribed painkillers by a physician and fell asleep at the wheel. Now, those children’s parents are taking action.

Over 800,000 signatures have been filed for the Troy and Alana Pack Patient Safety Act of 2014 to be placed on the California ballot this upcoming November.

Among other measures, this bill will require drug and alcohol testing of doctors and raise the California cap on damages that can be assessed in medical malpractice lawsuits from $250,000 to over $1million. Finally! Damages have been capped at the $250,000 level for over 30 years without any increases at all. This injustice must be corrected.

This is the first time a bill has called for mandatory drug and alcohol testing for doctors. In addition to this, physicians would have to access a prescription drug database when prescribing drugs to prevent the common problem of over-prescription.

This bill would be the first increase in the cap on damages that can be awarded to victims of medical malpractice or negligence in over 30 years! The cap will go up from $250,000 to over $1 million. How much have your medical costs gone up during this time? The current cap can, in no way, cover the catastrophic injuries or deaths caused by medical neglect.

For a more detailed report on this safety act, check out this video from Consumer Watchdog.

This is good news for people who have suffered due to the negligence of a caretaker in California. As a malpractice attorney in Riverside, California, I have experienced first-hand the pain and stress families experience as a result of professional malpractice or negligence, and will always work to get those families the compensation they deserve.