(1) IN GENERAL.—This Act shall not preempt 
or supersede any State or Federal law that imposes 
greater procedural or substantive protections (in-
cluding any statute of limitations that expires sooner 
than statutes of limitations imposed in this Act) for 
health care providers and health care organizations 
from liability, loss, or damages than those provided 
by this Act, except as provided for under subsection 
(d)(1). 
(2) APPLICABLE LAW.—Any issue that is not 
governed by any provision of law established by this 
Act shall be governed by otherwise applicable State 
or Federal law. 
(d) STATE FLEXIBILITY AND FEDERAL LAW.—The 
provisions of this Act shall not be construed to preempt— 
(1) any State law (whether effective before, on, 
or after the date of the enactment of this Act) that 
specifies a particular monetary amount of compen-
satory or punitive damages (or the total amount of 
damages) that may be awarded in a health care law-
suit, regardless of whether such monetary amount is 
greater or lesser than is provided for by this Act; 
(2) any defense available to a party in a health 
care lawsuit under any other provision of State or 
Federal law; or 
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(3) any State law that provides for an alter-
native dispute resolution system. 
(e) VACCINE INJURY.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—To the extent that title XXI 
of the Public Health Service Act establishes a Fed-
eral rule of law applicable to a civil action brought 
for a vaccine-related injury or death— 
(A) this Act does not affect the application 
of the rule of law to such an action; and 
(B) any rule of law prescribed by this Act 
that is in conflict with a rule of law of such title 
XXI shall not apply to such action. 
(2) APPLICABLE PROVISIONS.—If there is an 
aspect of a civil action brought for a vaccine-related 
injury or death to which a Federal rule of law under 
title XXI of the Public Health Service Act does not 
apply, then this Act shall apply to such aspect of 
such action. 
SEC. 13. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
(1) ALTERNATIVE DISPUTE RESOLUTION SYS-
TEM.—The term ‘‘alternative dispute resolution sys-
tem’’ means a system that provides for the resolu-
tion of health care lawsuits in a manner other than 
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through a civil action brought in a State or Federal 
court. 
(2) CLAIMANT.—The term ‘‘claimant’’ means 
any person who brings a health care lawsuit, includ-
ing a person who asserts or claims a right to legal 
or equitable contribution, indemnity, or subrogation, 
arising out of a health care liability claim, and any 
person on whose behalf such a claim is asserted, 
whether such person is deceased, incompetent, or a 
minor. 
(3) COLLATERAL
SOURCE
BENEFITS.—The 
term ‘‘collateral source benefits’’ means any amount 
paid or reasonably likely to be paid in the future to 
or on behalf of a claimant, or any service, product, 
or other benefit provided or reasonably likely to be 
provided in the future to or on behalf of a claimant, 
as a result of the injury or wrongful death, pursuant 
to— 
(A) any State or Federal health, sickness, 
income-disability, accident, or workers’ com-
pensation law; 
(B) any health, sickness, income-disability, 
or accident insurance that provides health bene-
fits or income-disability coverage; 
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(C) any contract or agreement of any 
group, organization, partnership, or corporation 
to provide, pay for, or reimburse the cost of 
medical, hospital, dental, or income-disability 
benefits; or 
(D) any other publicly or privately funded 
program. 
(4) 
COMPENSATORY
DAMAGES.—The 
term 
‘‘compensatory damages’’ means economic damages 
and noneconomic damages. 
(5) ECONOMIC DAMAGES.—The term ‘‘economic 
damages’’ means objectively verifiable monetary 
losses incurred as a result of the provision of, use 
of, or payment for (or failure to provide, use, or pay 
for) health care services or medical products, such as 
past and future medical expenses, loss of past and 
future earnings, cost of obtaining domestic services, 
loss of employment, and loss of business or employ-
ment opportunities. 
(6) HEALTH CARE GOODS OR SERVICES.—The 
term ‘‘health care goods or services’’ means any 
goods or services provided by a health care organiza-
tion, a health care provider, or an individual working 
under the supervision of a health care provider, that 
relate to the diagnosis, prevention, or treatment of 
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any human disease or impairment, or the assessment 
or care of the health of human beings. 
(7) 
HEALTH
CARE
LAWSUIT.—The 
term 
‘‘health care lawsuit’’— 
(A) means any health care liability claim 
affecting interstate commerce that is brought in 
a State or Federal court or pursuant to an al-
ternative dispute resolution system; and 
(B) does not include a claim or action that 
is based on criminal liability, that seeks civil 
fines or penalties paid to Federal, State, or 
local government, or that is grounded in anti-
trust. 
(8) HEALTH
CARE
LIABILITY
CLAIM.—The 
term ‘‘health care liability claim’’ means a demand 
by any person, whether or not pursuant to an alter-
native dispute resolution system, against a health 
care provider, health care organization, or the manu-
facturer, distributor, supplier, marketer, promoter, 
or seller of a medical product, including third-party 
claims, cross-claims, counterclaims, or contribution 
claims, that is based upon the provision of, use of, 
or payment for (or the failure to provide, use, or pay 
for) health care goods or services or any medical 
product, for injury or wrongful death, regardless of 
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