109TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 5
AN ACT 
To improve patient access to health care services 
and provide improved medical care by reducing 
the excessive burden the liability system places 
on the health care delivery system.
109TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 5
AN ACT 
To improve patient access to health care services and provide 
improved medical care by reducing the excessive burden 
the liability system places on the health care delivery 
system.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Help Efficient, Acces-
sible, Low-cost, Timely Healthcare (HEALTH) Act of 
2005’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE. 
(a) FINDINGS.—
(1) EFFECT
ON
HEALTH
CARE
ACCESS
AND 
COSTS.—Congress finds that our current civil justice 
system is adversely affecting patient access to health 
care services, better patient care, and cost-efficient 
health care, in that the health care liability system 
is a costly and ineffective mechanism for resolving 
claims of health care liability and compensating in-
jured patients, and is a deterrent to the sharing of 
information among health care professionals which 
impedes efforts to improve patient safety and quality 
of care. 
(2) EFFECT
ON
INTERSTATE
COMMERCE.—
Congress finds that the health care and insurance 
industries are industries affecting interstate com-
merce and the health care liability litigation systems 
existing throughout the United States are activities 
that affect interstate commerce by contributing to 
the high costs of health care and premiums for 
health care liability insurance purchased by health 
care system providers.
(3) EFFECT
ON
FEDERAL
SPENDING.—Con-
gress finds that the health care liability litigation 
systems existing throughout the United States have 
a significant effect on the amount, distribution, and 
use of Federal funds because of—
(A) the large number of individuals who 
receive health care benefits under programs op-
erated or financed by the Federal Government; 
(B) the large number of individuals who 
benefit because of the exclusion from Federal 
taxes of the amounts spent to provide them 
with health insurance benefits; and 
(C) the large number of health care pro-
viders who provide items or services for which 
the Federal Government makes payments. 
(b) PURPOSE.—It is the purpose of this Act to imple-
ment reasonable, comprehensive, and effective health care 
liability reforms designed to—
(1) improve the availability of health care serv-
ices in cases in which health care liability actions 
have been shown to be a factor in the decreased 
availability of services; 
(2) reduce the incidence of ‘‘defensive medi-
cine’’ and lower the cost of health care liability in-
surance, all of which contribute to the escalation of 
health care costs; 
(3) ensure that persons with meritorious health 
care injury claims receive fair and adequate com-
pensation, including reasonable noneconomic dam-
ages; 
(4) improve the fairness and cost-effectiveness 
of our current health care liability system to resolve 
disputes over, and provide compensation for, health 
care liability by reducing uncertainty in the amount 
of compensation provided to injured individuals; and 
(5) provide an increased sharing of information 
in the health care system which will reduce unin-
tended injury and improve patient care. 
SEC. 3. ENCOURAGING SPEEDY RESOLUTION OF CLAIMS. 
The time for the commencement of a health care law-
suit shall be 3 years after the date of manifestation of 
injury or 1 year after the claimant discovers, or through 
the use of reasonable diligence should have discovered, the 
injury, whichever occurs first. In no event shall the time 
for commencement of a health care lawsuit exceed 3 years 
after the date of manifestation of injury unless tolled for 
any of the following—
(1) upon proof of fraud; 
(2) intentional concealment; or
(3) the presence of a foreign body, which has no 
therapeutic or diagnostic purpose or effect, in the 
person of the injured person. 
Actions by a minor shall be commenced within 3 years 
from the date of the alleged manifestation of injury except 
that actions by a minor under the full age of 6 years shall 
be commenced within 3 years of manifestation of injury 
or prior to the minor’s 8th birthday, whichever provides 
a longer period. Such time limitation shall be tolled for 
minors for any period during which a parent or guardian 
and a health care provider or health care organization 
have committed fraud or collusion in the failure to bring 
an action on behalf of the injured minor. 
SEC. 4. COMPENSATING PATIENT INJURY. 
(a) UNLIMITED AMOUNT OF DAMAGES FOR ACTUAL 
ECONOMIC LOSSES IN HEALTH CARE LAWSUITS.—In any 
health care lawsuit, nothing in this Act shall limit a claim-
ant’s recovery of the full amount of the available economic 
damages, notwithstanding the limitation in subsection (b). 
(b) ADDITIONAL NONECONOMIC DAMAGES.—In any 
health care lawsuit, the amount of noneconomic damages, 
if available, may be as much as $250,000, regardless of 
the number of parties against whom the action is brought 
or the number of separate claims or actions brought with 
respect to the same injury.