Senate Budget Writers Adopt Plan to Kill Office of Patient Protection
Texas Watch—March 7th, 2005
The Senate Finance Committee voted to abolish the Office of Patient Protection (OPP) today, killing the last resort for patients who have been harmed by a negligent healthcare worker. This small state agency was created just two years ago in the wake of sweeping legal changes that have stripped Texans of their right to hold a negligent doctor or careless hospital accountable.
The agency’s mission is to assist patients who have been harmed by medical malpractice by helping individuals navigate the complicated complaint process. Additionally, the office is charged with representing patients in contested hearings against physicians and other healthcare workers. “ Today, the Senate Finance Committee turned their backs on Texas patients,” said Alex Winslow, Executive Director of the consumer group Texas Watch. “The Office of Patient Protection was the one place victims could go for assistance in their fight to hold a wrongdoer accountable.”
With an annual budget of only $650,000, and a staff of just five, the agency is funded through fees generated from licensed medical professionals. The legislature has not abolished the fees, however, just the agency.
“Without even giving the OPP a chance, lawmakers are killing any opportunity it has to help patients,” said Winslow. “Instead of making it more difficult for patients to hold a wrongdoer accountable, the legislature should be strengthening accountability measures that protect patients and crack down on bad doctors.”
The OPP’s Executive Director was just hired in May 2004. The agency only became fully operational in November when an Ombudsman was hired and the agency’s website was launched.
Thankfully, the House Appropriations Committee voted last week to adopt a recommendation from the Legislative Budget Board to fully fund the OPP. Unless the full Senate votes to fund the OPP, this issue will go before the House-Senate Conference Committee charged with working out differences between the two versions of the bill. Consumer groups and patient advocates will be working with lawmakers to ensure that patients have access to this agency of last resort.
“We should give the Office of Patient Protection a chance to do its job before taking away the one option that patient’s have to hold a wrongdoer accountable,” said Winslow.
The Office of Patient Protection was created by House Bill 2985 during the 78th Texas Legislature (2003), which was authored by former Rep. Jaime Capelo (D-Corpus Christi) and Sen. Jane Nelson (R-Flower Mound).
