Oregon Watchdog: Members of Tort Claims Task Force announced

Office of the Speaker
Office of the Senate President

PRESS RELEASE: May 22, 2008
CONTACT: Russ Kelley, Speaker’s Office, 503-986-1210
Robin Maxey, Senate President’s Office, 503-986-1605

Merkley, Courtney Announce Members of Tort Claims Task Force

SALEM—Oregon House Speaker Jeff Merkley (D-Portland) and Senate President Peter Courtney (D-Salem/Gervais/Woodburn) today announced the members of the Oregon Tort Claims Act Interim Task Force. Merkley and Courtney created the task force in February to make recommendations to the 2009 legislature on needed changes to the Oregon Tort Claims Act in the wake of the state Supreme Court's decision in Clarke v. OHSU.

The task force will consist of five Senators and five Representatives as well as four public members representing stakeholder groups including OHSU, Oregon Trial Lawyers Association, local governments and consumers. The members are:

Sen. Floyd Prozanski,Co-Chair |Rep. Greg Macpherson,Co-Chair |Bill Blair, Washington County Counsel
Sen. Doug Whitsett, Vice-Chair|Rep. Wayne Kreiger, Vice-Chair|Richard Lane, OTLA
Sen. Suzanne Bonamici |Rep. Jeff Barker |Steve Stadum, OHSU
Sen. Jeff Kruse |Rep. Sara Gelser
Sen. Vicki Walker |Rep. Dennis Richardson

A fourth public member will be named later. Additionally, when the task force was created in February, then-Rep. Suzanne Bonamici was named House co-chair. Since her appointment to the Senate, Rep. Greg Macpherson has agreed to serve as the House co-chair.

Among the issues the task force will address are questions of separating medical malpractice from other claims, adjusting caps for inflation, economic versus non-economic damages, and establishing a procedural mechanism for challenging caps. The task force may also examine tort claim provisions in other states to develop a model for Oregon.

Governor Kulongoski has initiated an informal workgroup to evaluate how the Clarke decision has affected insurance, litigation and state contracting in Oregon. The legislature's task force will work closely with that workgroup and make its final recommendations to the legislature by mid-December.
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