HB 261-FN – AS INTRODUCED
2011 SESSION
06/01
HOUSE BILL 261-FN
AN ACT eliminating screening panels for medical injury claims.
SPONSORS: Rep. C. McGuire, Merr 8; Rep. Itse, Rock 9
This bill eliminates screening panels for medical injury claims.
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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
11-0114
06/01
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Eleven
AN ACT eliminating screening panels for medical injury claims.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 Repeal. RSA 519-B, relative to screening panels for medical injury claims, is repealed.
2 Effective Date. This act shall take effect January 1, 2012.
LBAO
11-0114
Revised 01/26/11
HB 261 FISCAL NOTE
AN ACT eliminating screening panels for medical injury claims.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The Insurance Department and Judicial Branch state this bill will have an indeterminable fiscal impact on state general fund revenues and will decrease state general fund expenditures by an indeterminable amount in FY 2012 and each year thereafter. There will be no fiscal impact on county and local revenues or expenditures.
METHODOLOGY:
The Insurance Department states this bill eliminates screening panels for medical injury claims. The Department states removing the screening panel process may impact insurance premiums which would impact state general fund revenues from the insurance premium tax. However, in December 2010, the Medical Malpractice Panel and Insurance Oversight Committee concluded they did not have enough information to determine what impact, if any, the screening panel process has on insurance cost and premiums. Therefore, the Department is unable to estimate the fiscal impact at this time.
In FY 2010, the Judicial Branch paid retired judges who chair the panels a total of 32.5 days of work at $556 per day plus 7.65% in social security and Medicare taxes, resulting in an annual expenditure of $19,452 (32.5 days * $556 per day + 7.65% for social security and Medicare). The Branch states this bill will reduce state general fund expenditures by $9,726 in FY 2012 ($19,452/2 = $9,726) and by $19,452 in FY 2013 and each year thereafter. Additionally, the Branch estimates one position (labor grade 24) spends 70 percent of time coordinating the malpractice screening panels and a court monitor (labor grade 20) spends 12.3 percent of time recording the panels. The Branch is unsure whether these positions will be retained if this bill is enacted, therefore the fiscal impact related to these positions cannot be determined at this time. The Branch estimates the following costs for screening panels that otherwise might be dedicated to other need areas of the Branch:
FY 2012 |
FY 2013 |
FY 2014 |
FY 2015 | |
Coordinator (LG 24) |
$35,191 |
$36,896 |
$38,687 |
$40,567 |
FICA (7.65%) |
2,692 |
2,823 |
2,960 |
3,103 |
Retirement |
4,332 |
4,523 |
4,743 |
4,974 |
Life Insurance |
20 |
20 |
20 |
20 |
Dental Insurance |
937 |
984 |
1,033 |
1,085 |
Health Insurance |
14,709 |
16,285 |
18,030 |
19,962 |
Total Salary and Benefits |
$57,881 |
$61,531 |
$65,473 |
$69,711 |
Cost for 70 % of time |
$40,517 |
$43,072 |
$45,831 |
$48,798 |
Court Monitor (LG 20) |
$31,983 |
$33,528 |
$35,150 |
$36,853 |
FICA (7.65%) |
2,447 |
2,565 |
2,689 |
2,819 |
Retirement |
3,937 |
4,111 |
4,309 |
4,518 |
Life Insurance |
20 |
20 |
20 |
20 |
Dental Insurance |
937 |
984 |
1,033 |
1,085 |
Health Insurance |
14,709 |
16,285 |
18,030 |
19,962 |
Total Salary and Benefits |
$54,033 |
$57,493 |
$61,231 |
$65,257 |
Cost for 12.3 % of time |
$6,646 |
$7,072 |
$7,531 |
$8,027 |