Compensating Persons Injured by Medical Malpractice and Other Tortious Behavior for Future Medical Expenses Under the Affordable Care Act

In an effort to reduce the amount of compensation available to persons injured by medical malpractice and other torts, opponents of the civil justice system are proposing to limit claimants’ recovery for future care expenses to the maximum annual out-of-pocket limit under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which in 2015 is $6600. The article explains that the proposal is based on unreliable assumptions about the ACA; misunderstands the scope of the ACA’s out-of-pocket limit; is unworkable; and would be bad public policy by reducing the quality of health care, shifting costs from tortfeasors to taxpayers, imposing additional losses on innocent claimants, and subverting the democratic process.