H. B. 3033
(By Mr. Speaker, Mr. Kiss, and Delegates Amores,
Trump, Border, Michael, Mezzatesta and Kominar)
[Introduced February 17, 2003; referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary.]
A BILL TO amend article seven, chapter fifty-five of the code of
West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as
amended, by adding thereto a new section, designated section
nine-a, relating to damages for acts causing physical injury
and prohibiting medical monitoring relief absent manifest,
present injury or disease.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That article seven, chapter fifty-five of the code of West
Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be
amended by adding thereto a new section, designated section nine-a,
to read as follows:
ARTICLE 7. ACTIONS FOR INJURIES.
§55-7-9a. Claims for medical monitoring.
(a) Notwithstanding the decision of the supreme court in the
case of Bower V. Westinghouse, 552 S.E.2d 424 (W. Va. 1999), in any civil action in which an individual seeks relief of any kind
including damages and equitable relief for the wrongful or tortious
acts of any person, such relief may not include future medical
monitoring, testing, treatment, services, surveillance or
procedures of any kind, including the costs and expenses associated
therewith, unless such future medical monitoring, testing,
examination, treatment, services, surveillance or procedures are
directly related to a present manifest physical injury or disease
which was caused by or directly related to such tortious or
wrongful acts and which was found to have caused present physical
impairment.
(b) Nothing in this section shall be construed to create,
recognize or ratify a claim or cause of action of any kind.
(c) It is the intent of the Legislature that this legislation
shall overrule the decision of the supreme court of appeals of West
Virginia in the case of Bower V. Westinghouse, 522 S.E.2d 424 (W.
Va. 1999). This section shall apply to any claim or cause of
action pending on the effective day of this section.
(d) For purposes of this section "person" shall mean any
individual, partnership, firm, society, association, trust,
corporation, other business entity, or any agency, unit or
instrumentality of federal, state or local government.
(e) If any portion of this section or any application of this
section is subsequently found to be unconstitutional or in violation of applicable law, it shall not affect the validity of
the remainder of this section or such applications of the section
as are not unconstitutional or in such violation.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to require that damages for
the costs of future medical treatment and testing be directly
related to a current manifest physical injury or disease.
This section is new; therefore, strike-throughs
and
underscoring have been omitted.