Family Health Care Preservation Act

TABLE OF CONTENTS: Title I: Portable and Permanent Private Health Insurance Subtitle A: Portability Subtitle B: Permanence Title II: Affordable Health Insurance Coverage Subtitle A: Equitable Tax Treatment of Individuals Providing Own Health Care Subtitle B: Medical Savings Accounts Title III: Enhanced Efficiency Through Paperwork Reduction Title IV: Meaningful Medical Liability Reform Family Health Care Preservation Act - Title I: Portable and Permanent Private Health Insurance - Subtitle A: Portability - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to modify required continuation coverage of group health plans by allowing the offering of annual deductibles for such coverage. Terminates such continuation coverage after an individual is eligible for employer-based coverage for more than 90 days. (Sec. 102) Allows penalty-free withdrawals from qualified retirement plans to pay for health insurance during a continuation period. Subtitle B: Permanence - Prohibits an insurer from cancelling an individual or group health insurance plan or denying renewal of coverage except for specified reasons, including premium nonpayment or fraud by the insured. Prohibits an employer from cancelling a self-insured group health plan or denying renewal of coverage except for similar reasons. (Sec. 112) Requires individual health insurance plans and group health plans to offer insureds the option to purchase new health insurance plans after enactment of this Act. Title II: Affordable Health Insurance - Subtitle A: Equitable Tax Treatment of Individuals Providing Own Health Care - Makes inapplicable to qualified health insurance costs under this Act the adjusted gross income limitation on deductibility of medical expenses. Subtitle B: Medical Savings Accounts - Allows individuals covered under a catastrophic health insurance plan a tax deduction for contributions made to a medical care savings account established for the benefit of the individual or such individual's spouse and dependents, if they are also covered under the plan. Allows such deduction whether or not an individual itemizes deductions. Disallows distributions from such accounts as medical expense deductions. Excludes employer contributions to such accounts from employment taxes. Imposes an excise tax for excess contributions to medical care savings accounts and for prohibited transactions. Title III: Enhanced Efficiency Through Paperwork Reduction - Directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to adopt standards to reduce the administrative and paperwork burdens of all Federal health care programs by 50 percent within the two-year period following the date of this Act's enactment (initial reduction), and by an additional 50 percent over a subsequent three-year period (subsequent reduction), for a total reduction of 75 percent over the five-year period following such date. Requires the Secretary, to achieve the initial reduction, to adopt standards for Federal health care programs relating to: (1) data elements for use in paper and electronic claims processing under health insurance plans, as well as for use in utilization review and management of care; (2) uniform claims forms; and (3) uniform electronic transmission of the data elements, including protections to assure the confidentiality of patient-specific information and to protect against the unauthorized use and disclosure of information. Directs the Secretary, in order to achieve the subsequent reduction, to modify by regulation the standards adopted with respect to the initial reduction. (Sec. 302) Requires each State, to be eligible for Federal funds in connection with any State-administered health care program, to standardize the processing of paper and electronic claims to reduce the administrative and paperwork burdens on such programs by 75 percent during the five-year period following enactment of this Act. Sets forth provisions regarding enforcement of this provision and waivers of payment reductions for noncompliance. Title IV: Meaningful Medical Liability Reform - Makes this title applicable with respect to any medical malpractice liability claim or action brought in State or Federal court, except with respect to certain claims or actions for damages arising from a vaccine-related injury or death. Sets forth provisions regarding: (1) preemption; (2) negotiated liability; (3) effect on sovereign immunity and choice of law or venue; and (4) jurisdiction. (Sec. 402) Prohibits such action from being initiated after the expiration of: (1) the two-year period that begins on the latter of the date the alleged injury that is the subject of the claim was discovered or should reasonably have been discovered; and (2) the four-year period that begins on the date on which the alleged injury occurred. Makes an exception for a minor who has not attained age six. (Sec. 403) Provides that: (1) the liability of each defendant in such action, with respect to economic and noneconomic damages, shall be several only and not joint; (2) damages payable by a defendant shall be directly proportional to such defendant's percentage of fault or responsibility for the injury; and (3) the trier of fact shall determine and assign a percentage of responsibility for each such defendant. (Sec. 404) Requires: (1) all requests for discovery pursuant to such action to identify the relevant portion of the complaint, answer, or other pleading to which responses to the discovery requests are expected to relate; and (2) the court, with respect to any motion for discovery, to award the prevailing party reasonable fees and expenses, including reasonable attorney's fees, unless the court finds that the position of the unsuccessful party was substantially justified or that special circumstances make such an award unjust. (Sec. 405) Limits the total amount of noneconomic damages that may be awarded to a claimant and family members to $250,000, regardless of the number of parties against whom the action is brought or the number of actions brought with respect to the injury. (Sec. 406) Specifies that a defendant may not be required to pay damages awarded for any economic losses to be incurred after the date on which the judgment is entered exceeding $100,000, in a single, lump-sum payment, but shall be permitted to make such payments periodically based on projections of the amount of expected damages at intervals, as determined by the court. Permits the court to require that a defendant purchase an annuity or fund a reversionary trust to make periodic payments. Prohibits reopening of a judgment awarding such payments at any time to contest, amend, or modify the schedule or amount of the payments in the absence of fraud or any other basis under which a party may obtain relief from a final judgment. (Sec. 407) Sets forth provisions regarding costs and fees, including limitations on attorneys charging or collecting contingency fees. Establishes recordkeeping requirements as a prerequisite to the receipt of an award of attorney's fees. (Sec. 408) Sets forth provisions regarding: (1) contribution and indemnification; and (2) collateral sources. (Sec. 410) Prohibits the award of noneconomic damages with respect to any medical product liability claim alleged against a medical product producer if: (1) the drug or device that is the subject of such claim was subject to specified approval or premarket approval under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA); or (2) the drug or device is generally recognized as safe and effective pursuant to conditions established by the FDA and applicable regulations, including packaging and labeling regulations. Makes exceptions in cases of withheld information, misrepresentation, or illegal payment of FDA officials to secure approval. (Sec. 411) Provides that, in any medical malpractice liability action that is certified as a class action: (1) the share of damages under any final judgment or settlement that is awarded to any party serving as a representative claimant shall be calculated in the same manner as the shares awarded to all other members of the claimant class (but permits the award of reasonable compensation, costs, and expenses relating to the representation of the class); (2) if a party is represented by an attorney who has a beneficial interest in the subject of the litigation, the court shall make a determination of whether such interest constitutes a conflict of interest sufficient to disqualify the attorney; and (3) an attorney may not represent the class if the attorney has paid, or is obligated to pay, a referral fee with respect to the action (and bars an attorney who knowingly violates this provision from representing the party in any other action to which this title applies).