Members, the insurance reform package continues to move at the state capitol. The bills that moved this week are listed below. The big news out of the capitol is that there is now a date for a constitutional convention though some disagree that the date will stick. There is talk of doing the convention during the legislative session in May, so the legislature is working to get most of the bills moved through the process early.

HB 423 by Rep Melerine passed the house floor by a vote of 88-10 with 7 absent. This bill would reform the collateral source rule or what we commonly call phantom damages. In the 2020 bill that was passed that supposedly targeted reform, included a 40% add on that the court shall award to the claimant of the difference between the amount billed and amount paid. This bill would remove the 40%.

HB 337 by Rep McFarland passed the house floor by a vote of 86-15-4 . This bill would repeal the direct action statute, except in certain circumstances. This means that the plaintiff could not sure an insurance company directly would not be named, and the court is prohibited from mentioning the existence of insurance coverage in a jury's presence. This bill would put Louisiana in line with 47 other states, thus making Louisiana a more attractive state to write insurance.  Watch Rep McFarland as he does a great job explaining why we need HB 337.

HB 315 by Rep Johnson which extends the time for you to be sued from 1 to 2 years passed the house floor by a vote 83-18-4. This is the governor’s bill that he touts will reduce lawsuits. We fought to have an amendment included that would have given notice to you when a plaintiff is seeking medical treatment, but that amendment only garnered 18 votes. Huge thanks to Rep Mark Wright for courageously bringing the amendment knowing that the governor did not want this bill amended. We greatly appreciate the 17 who voted with him in support of the amendment.

Voting in support of an amendment on HB 315:

Mr. Speaker

Amedee

Bagley

Beaullieu

Carlson

Carver

Chenevert

Echols

Emerson

Freiberg

Henry

Horton

Landry,

J. McCormick

McMakin

Melerine

Wright

Wyble

SB 355 by Sen Stine is a supposed third party litigation funding bill, but it really is not. It is more of a national security bill that provides in any civil action in which a foreign third party litigation funder provides funds intended to defray litigation expenses, the third-party litigation funder shall meet requirements that must be disclosed to the attorney general. LMTA general counsel, Doug Williams, testified in the Senate Judiciary A Committee about our concerns with this bill. The committee passed the bill out without objection. SB 355 does nothing about the third-party funders that are from the US, which is why we believe it is a national security bill and not a transparency bill. We are seeking amendments to SB 355 to include the transparency that we need. We deserve to know who is involved in our litigation. We strongly support SB 336 by Rep Emily Chenevert which is a third party litigation funding bill that requires transparency and disclosure. That bill passed the house floor and is awaiting a senate committee hearing.