Medical malpractice bill returns to House.

The Hill (4/17, Pecquet) reports in its "Healthwatch" blog, that the House Judiciary Committee "will mark up medical malpractice legislation on Tuesday, even though the full House passed identical legislation just last month." A $250,000 cap on non-economic damages, passed by the House, though languishing in the Senate, as part of a bill to repeal the Independent Payment Advisory Board that is part of the Obama healthcare reform law, will be taken up as a separate bill. The Hill explains, "The reason: money. Marking up the tort reform bill would allow the committee to claim $41 billion in savings to the deficit over the next 10 years -- more than enough to meet the committee's $39 billion savings requirement under the House Republican budget." It also notes that the gambit "is raising some hackles, even on the right," as some Republican committee members complain that it intrudes on states' rights.