Refers to California's Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act, which was passed by the Legislature in 1975 and signed by then-Gov. Jerry Brown, caps the amount of damages for non-economic or "pain and suffering" at $250,000, but leaves unlimited the amount plaintiffs can seek for other damages such as medical costs and lost wages. It also doesn't restrict punitive damages, but such awards require proof of a conscious disregard for the safety of a patient and are difficult to obtain in medical claims.
For physicians and malpractice insurance companies, the law, often referred to as MICRA, has helped hold down insurance costs, prevent unreasonably high jury verdicts from sympathetic juries and kept doctors from fleeing the state.
Critics object to the fact the $250,000 cap hasn't been adjusted for inflation in 34 years. They also argue that because the law allows unlimited awards for economic losses, such as lost wages and ongoing medical costs, it discriminat
Usage:
The lawyers turned down our "250 case" against the negligent doctor because they said it did not make sense economically for them to pursue it.