Election 2014

  • Read more: Update: Proposition 46

    Update: Proposition 46

    By Emily Largent I previously wrote about California Proposition 46–which proposed to raise the cap on pain and suffering awards in malpractice cases from $250,000 to $1.1 million, require doctors to check a statewide database of drug prescriptions before prescribing some narcotics, and require doctors to undergo random drug and alcohol testing–here. What happened?  On Tuesday, voters “soundly defeated a…

  • Read more: Bioethics on the Ballot

    Bioethics on the Ballot

    In addition to the closely-watched senate and gubernatorial candidates, 146 ballot questions were up for vote yesterday in 42 states across the nation. Below is a review of the some of the most pressing bioethics issues on the docket and the latest information on what passed according to Politico’s Ballot Tracker. 

  • Read more: Personhood Measures in the 2014 Election Cycle

    Personhood Measures in the 2014 Election Cycle

    By Jonathan F. Will [Cross-posted at The Conversation] Citizens of three states had the opportunity to vote on measures considered by many to be adverse to abortion rights during the November 2014 election cycle.  While the personhood efforts in Colorado and North Dakota failed, the Tennessee electorate approved an amendment making clear that their state…

  • Read more: The Medical Liability Climate: The Calm Between Storms Is the Time For Reforms

    The Medical Liability Climate: The Calm Between Storms Is the Time For Reforms

    By: Michelle Mello, JD, PhD Stanford Law School and Stanford University School of Medicine On November 4, Californians will vote on Proposition 46, a ballot initiative to adjust the $250,000 state’s noneconomic damages cap in medical malpractice cases for inflation, raising it to $1.1 million virtually overnight.  It’s a long overdue move – California has one of…

  • Read more: Prop. 46: Lawyers v. Doctors

    Prop. 46: Lawyers v. Doctors

    By Emily Largent California Proposition 46, the Medical Malpractice Lawsuits Cap and Drug Testing Doctors Initiative, is on the November 4, 2014 ballot.  If approved by voters, the initiative would: increase the state’s cap on non-economic damages that can be assessed in medical negligence lawsuits; require hospitals to test certain physicians for drugs and alcohol; and…