After a few detours, a controversial bill that would cap medical malpractice awards for pain and suffering at $250,000 is now headed to the Senate Natural Resources committee for discussion and public input.
" I was just trying to determine the relevance of medical malpractice with animals," Sen. Jon Greiner, R-Ogden, said of the committee-shuffling for SB145 that took place on the Senate floor this week. "I guess we'll find out."
The "med-mal" bill, sponsored by Sen. Stuart Adams, R-Layton, was first scheduled to go before the Senate Health and Human Services committee, chaired by Sen. Chris Buttars, R-West Jordan.
On Wednesday, Buttars said his committee had a full slate and asked that SB145 be switched to the Senate Business and Labor committee, headed by Sen. John Valentine, R-Orem.
During Thursday's Senate session, Buttars told colleagues he had made a "procedural error" because he failed to ask Adams about the change. He then asked that SB145 go to Natural Resources "as requested by the sponsor."
Senate President Michael Waddoups, R-Taylorsville, later told the Senate that he requested that switch.
"There are so many games that have been played, so much bias in some of the committees," Waddoups said.
"There was a little bit of friction between Health and Judiciary," Waddoups added. "They both felt that it was very relevant to their committees -- that's the issue."
After Thursday's Senate session, Waddoups said that SB145 probably would have easily cleared the Health committee.
"It was my perception also that it was dead in the Judiciary committee," Waddoups said. "We want to have a fair, open hearing and Natural Resources seemed like a fair neutral committee that would give it the time it needed."
