Much good has resulted since Illinois lawmakers joined 35 other states and placed limits on medical damage awards three years ago. Doctors no longer flee the state in droves, and health care is more accessible. But if the trial lawyers prevail in a case heard by the Illinois Supreme Court recently, those trends could be reversed.

In 2005 the state General Assembly passed a law that capped medical malpractice jury awards for pain and suffering at $500,000 against doctors and $1 million against hospitals. At the time, the state’s medical litigation climate was one of the nation’s worst; jury awards soared. Between 1998 and 2003, damage awards for pain and suffering in Cook County (Chicago) grew by 247%.