America can learn a lot from Texas.

[johncoby2]

The following was written by John Cobarruvias of Houston Texas. Mr. Cobarruvias is a volunteer with Homeowners Against Deficient Dwellings and has testified at hearings in Texas on insurance and tort reform, especially in support of new homebuyers. Please feel free to copy, distribute, or repost as you see fit. You may contact John at [e-mail].

America can learn a lot from Texas

Texas has some of the best mouth watering barbeque in the country. We have some of the best college football and college education and our high school football program is second to none. But we have something that all of America can learn from: bad legislation. Congress is currently debating health care reform and could learn from the mistakes of the Texas Legislature over the last few years including insurance reform, tort reform, and deregulation.

Tort reform
In 2003 the Republican controlled Texas house ushered in sweeping tort reform, limiting medical malpractice suits to $250,000. These limits were supported by the insurance industry, some of the medical community, and their front groups calling themselves “Texans” and “Citizens” against lawsuit abuse. As they are doing today with national health care reform, they promised lower health care costs, lower insurance rates, and expanded health care availability. Instead, Texas has the highest rate of uninsured in the nation and our cost of health care and insurance has skyrocketed out of control. Tort reform didn’t work in Texas. It won’t work on the national level either.

Insurance reform
Along with tort reform, the Republican controlled House passed massive homeowner insurance reform. Texas at the time had the highest rates in the country and insurance reform was the hottest issue of the 2002 campaign. In the end the Legislature limited oversight of the industry, allowed the use of optional insurance policies and gave the industry almost everything they requested. In return homeowners would receive lower rates due to increased competition. Unfortunately, like tort reform, the promises never materialized. Rates in Texas tripled. Coverage was cut and deductibles soared. Texas now has rates twice as high as the national average with less coverage and higher deductibles. Again, insurance reform didn’t work in Texas.

Electricity and College Tuition Deregulation
The Republican controlled House also passed electricity and college tuition deregulation again with promises of lower rates with more competition. With Enron and Ken Lay leading the lobbying effort, electricity was deregulation in most of the State, resulting in higher rates, sometimes as high as 3 times pre-deregulation. Tuition costs for State Universities has since doubled and our once shining example of fiscal responsibility, the Texas Tomorrow Fund providing a method for families to save for college, was cancelled due to the skyrocketing cost of college. Electricity and college tuition deregulation failed.

Learn from our mistakes. Please.
Congress has an incredible resource staring them in the face: the great State of Texas with its examples of failed legislation. It is clear, tort reform will not lower health care or insurance rates, the insurance industry cannot be trusted, and deregulation will not lower rates or create competition as promised.

Texas has mosquitoes large enough for an afternoon snack, pumpkins the size of a small car, and we also have enough bad legislative experiences to last a lifetime, or a debate on national health care reform.

For the sake of all Americans learn from our mistakes.

[TexasObserver]

1. Testify!

Well said.

[Skink]

2. electricity dereg has led to the highest rates in the country.

now they want to build Nuclear power here. I realize the demand bbecause of the phenomenal growth in population but Texas rate payers cannot afford another 10-20 percent hike.

[Blue State Blues]

3. Learn from Tort Reform in Texas and Health Insurance in Mass.

There is no sense in repeating these mistakes at the national level.

[onethatcares]

4. take Texas and Florida, throw in a little pinch of Louisiana

and you'll see a fiscal disaster.

The only thing Florida has going for it to date is we don't have oil rigs on the west coast yet. But they're coming, you can bet your ass on that.

[Cleita]

5. Texas also has big furry spiders as I found out!

Too bad they haven't taken care of the bad legislators.

[troubledamerican]

6. does anything but evil emanate from Texas?