The Seattle Post Intelligencer reports that the Oregon State Judiciary Committee has approved Senate Bill 311 which allows juries to award victims who sue the State or local government for damages caused by government negligence to a larger award.
Senate Bill 311 was brought about after a 2007 Oregon Supreme Court ruling found that a $200,000 damage award for medical malpractice was insufficient to care for a boy who suffered a traumatic brain injury at Oregon Health and Science University.
Senate Bill 311 proposes that damage caps will increase $100,000 a year to a maximum of $1.5 million. In addition, awards will no longer distinguish between economic and non economic damages (commonly known as pain and suffering).