Implications of the Bill

Both positive and negative implications arise from the prospect of passing this legislation. Supporters of the bill see this legislation as the way to ensure patient's rights and maintain quality of care. Meanwhile, opponents argue that giving patients the right to sue their health plans will increase costs and raise premiums, exacerbating the problem of the uninsured.

The Democrats and patient advocacy groups supporting this legislation believe this bill will ensure the rights of patients, giving patients deserved compensation for cost-containment related medical injuries. With the right to sue, Bill of Right advocates maintain that patients will be armed with the necessary legal weapons which will make certain HMOs deliver more inclusive policies and do not sacrifice necessary patient care for cost containment. Without this right, HMOs have little incentive to provide certain medical treatments for patients.

Key opponents to the bill, such as Republicans, HMOs, and employers, fear it will only increase costs and raise premiums, forcing employers to drop health insurance benefits to its employees. They argue that money will be diverted from patient care to trial lawyers, and any cost-containment benefits from managed care will go to frivolous, costly litigation. This will only add to the growing problem of the uninsured and expedite the escalating costs of healthcare.

Despite these differing opinions, both supporters and opponents have strong and intelligent arguments for or against this legislation. The five year Congressional stalemate indeed has arisen as a result of the fine line between balancing cost containment, quality, and access issues. All three factors play an important and necessary role in our current health care system. Meddling with one factor affects all the others accordingly. Therefore, looking at the Bipartisan Patient Protection Act of 2001, we must be careful in examining exactly how we are tweaking this sensitive relationship. Only by implementing policies that encourage appropriate resource allocations for each factor, will we be able improve our current system without major repercussions.