179 
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 ac-
tions by a minor under the full age of 6 years shall 
be commenced within 3 years of manifestation of in-
jury 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. 504. COMPENSATING PATIENT INJURY. 
(a) UNLIMITED AMOUNT OF DAMAGES FOR ACTUAL 
ECONOMIC LOSSES IN HEALTH CARE LAWSUITS.—In any 
health care lawsuit, nothing in this title shall limit a claim-
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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. 
(c) NO DISCOUNT OF AWARD FOR NONECONOMIC 
DAMAGES.—For purposes of applying the limitation in 
subsection (b), future noneconomic damages shall not be 
discounted to present value. The jury shall not be in-
formed about the maximum award for noneconomic dam-
ages. An award for noneconomic damages in excess of 
$250,000 shall be reduced either before the entry of judg-
ment, or by amendment of the judgment after entry of 
judgment, and such reduction shall be made before ac-
counting for any other reduction in damages required by 
law. If separate awards are rendered for past and future 
noneconomic damages and the combined awards exceed 
$250,000, the future noneconomic damages shall be re-
duced first. 
(d) FAIR SHARE RULE.—In any health care lawsuit, 
each party shall be liable for that party’s several share 
of any damages only and not for the share of any other 
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person. Each party shall be liable only for the amount of 
damages allocated to such party in direct proportion to 
such party’s percentage of responsibility. Whenever a 
judgment of liability is rendered as to any party, a sepa-
rate judgment shall be rendered against each such party 
for the amount allocated to such party. For purposes of 
this section, the trier of fact shall determine the propor-
tion of responsibility of each party for the claimant’s 
harm. 
SEC. 505. MAXIMIZING PATIENT RECOVERY. 
(a) COURT SUPERVISION OF SHARE OF DAMAGES 
ACTUALLY PAID TO CLAIMANTS.—In any health care law-
suit, the court shall supervise the arrangements for pay-
ment of damages to protect against conflicts of interest 
that may have the effect of reducing the amount of dam-
ages awarded that are actually paid to claimants. In par-
ticular, in any health care lawsuit in which the attorney 
for a party claims a financial stake in the outcome by vir-
tue of a contingent fee, the court shall have the power 
to restrict the payment of a claimant’s damage recovery 
to such attorney, and to redirect such damages to the 
claimant based upon the interests of justice and principles 
of equity. In no event shall the total of all contingent fees 
for representing all claimants in a health care lawsuit ex-
ceed the following limits: 
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(1) Forty percent of the first $50,000 recovered 
by the claimant(s). 
(2) Thirty-three and one-third percent of the 
next $50,000 recovered by the claimant(s). 
(3) Twenty-five percent of the next $500,000 
recovered by the claimant(s). 
(4) Fifteen percent of any amount by which the 
recovery by the claimant(s) is in excess of $600,000. 
(b) APPLICABILITY.—The limitations in this section 
shall apply whether the recovery is by judgment, settle-
ment, mediation, arbitration, or any other form of alter-
native dispute resolution. In a health care lawsuit involv-
ing a minor or incompetent person, a court retains the 
authority to authorize or approve a fee that is less than 
the maximum permitted under this section. The require-
ment for court supervision in the first two sentences of 
subsection (a) applies only in civil actions. 
SEC. 506. ADDITIONAL HEALTH BENEFITS. 
In any health care lawsuit involving injury or wrong-
ful death, any party may introduce evidence of collateral 
source benefits. If a party elects to introduce such evi-
dence, any opposing party may introduce evidence of any 
amount paid or contributed or reasonably likely to be paid 
or contributed in the future by or on behalf of the oppos-
ing party to secure the right to such collateral source bene-
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fits. No provider of collateral source benefits shall recover 
any amount against the claimant or receive any lien or 
credit against the claimant’s recovery or be equitably or 
legally subrogated to the right of the claimant in a health 
care lawsuit involving injury or wrongful death. This sec-
tion shall apply to any health care lawsuit that is settled 
as well as a health care lawsuit that is resolved by a fact 
finder. This section shall not apply to section 1862(b) (42 
U.S.C. 1395y(b)) or section 1902(a)(25) (42 U.S.C. 
1396a(a)(25)) of the Social Security Act. 
SEC. 507. PUNITIVE DAMAGES. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Punitive damages may, if other-
wise permitted by applicable State or Federal law, be 
awarded against any person in a health care lawsuit only 
if it is proven by clear and convincing evidence that such 
person acted with malicious intent to injure the claimant, 
or that such person deliberately failed to avoid unneces-
sary injury that such person knew the claimant was sub-
stantially certain to suffer. In any health care lawsuit 
where no judgment for compensatory damages is rendered 
against such person, no punitive damages may be awarded 
with respect to the claim in such lawsuit. No demand for 
punitive damages shall be included in a health care lawsuit 
as initially filed. A court may allow a claimant to file an 
amended pleading for punitive damages only upon a mo-
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