Obama, Dems at Odds Over Malpractice

Not so fast, say some Senate Democrats over President Barack Obama's plan to institute medical malpractice rules. The proposal, offered by Obama during his State of the Union speech, was an obvious effort to find common cause with the Republicans. The plan designed to cut health care costs seems to be a non-starter with Sen. Patrick Leahy, the Vermont Democrat and chairman of the Judiciary Committee. With the proposal, Obama has also angered trial lawyers, a valued and valuable constituency for the Democrats. Sounding much like Republicans, Democrats urge the malpractice issue to be resolved on a state level not by the federal government.