Legislation that would have altered the evidentiary rule concerning apologies or expressions of regret in a medical malpractice liability case was defeated in the House Judiciary Committee. HB 607 would have allowed a health care provider to make an apology to a victim, or a member of a victim’s family, without fear of the statement being used as evidence in a malpractice case.

The Maryland Chamber supported this bill, which would have increased the likelihood of meaningful dialogue between health care providers and patients who have experienced bad outcomes from medical procedures. Such dialogue could have led to a better understand exactly what occurred during the procedure, and may have resulted in fewer medical malpractice suits being filed.

View the Judiciary Committee’s vote on HB 607, click here (pdf).