ANNAPOLIS, Md. - The state General Assembly approved a medical malpractice overhaul package early Thursday aimed at cutting doctors' skyrocketing insurance costs, but Gov. Robert Ehrlich said he would veto it because it includes a tax on HMO premiums.
In a meeting that stretched 17 hours, until around 3:30 a.m., the bill got final approval in the Senate in a 32-13 vote. Earlier, the House had approved it 85-44.
The governor summoned lawmakers to Annapolis on Tuesday for a special session to deal with malpractice costs, which he said was the most important issue facing the state. Doctors face a Friday deadline for paying their 2005 premiums.
Ehrlich proposed strict restrictions on malpractice lawsuits, arguing that frivolous suits and excessive awards had driven up the cost of insurance to the point that some doctors were shutting down their practices.
But the bill developed by House and Senate negotiators also would apply a 2 percent tax on HMO premiums, adamantly opposed by Ehrlich. The proceeds from the tax would be used to underwrite the cost of malpractice insurance and increase Medicaid reimbursements to doctors in specialties such as obstetrics, where malpractice costs have been particularly high.
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