http://www.themorningsun.com/
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Gov. Rick Snyder, the same governor who signed legislation repealing the state's compulsory motorcycle helmet law last year, wants a cap on medical care for catastrophic auto-related injuries.
If you pay auto insurance in Michigan, there's a lot to like about a proposal that backers claim will save the average consumer about $250 annually. Michigan currently has no limit on coverage for catastrophic injuries under its no-fault system and its average auto insurance rates are among the nation's highest.
We hope it gets careful examination in the Legislature. Anything that could save consumers money deserves such consideration, but right now we're inclined to say thanks, but no thanks.
Among those who aren't fond of the proposal are some Republicans, who claim the Michigan Catastrophic Claims Association manages the $14.2 billion fund well. What's more, the $1 million cap Snyder proposed can be met quickly in particularly complicated injury cases.
It felt funny hearing Snyder call for such a reform a year after signing off on the helmet repeal.
Traffic deaths rose 5.3 percent in the state last year and motorcycle fatalities were up 18 percent. The number of riders killed went from five in 2011 to 55 the following year. The statistics don't document which cases involved riders without helmets, but it's hard not to believe there's a correlation.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has seen motorcycle crashes rise in every state that has rejected helmet laws and adds that motorcyclists, helmets or not, are 37 percent more likely to die in a crash than Americans driving or riding in cars.
So Michigan allows motorcyclists — whose injuries often can demand expensive long-term care — to endanger themselves and its governor now wants to limit the amount injured people can be paid for care in the event of a critical crash.
That doesn't make much sense.
Are we missing something?
Gov. Rick Snyder, the same governor who signed legislation repealing the state's compulsory motorcycle helmet law last year, wants a cap on medical care for catastrophic auto-related injuries.
If you pay auto insurance in Michigan, there's a lot to like about a proposal that backers claim will save the average consumer about $250 annually. Michigan currently has no limit on coverage for catastrophic injuries under its no-fault system and its average auto insurance rates are among the nation's highest.
We hope it gets careful examination in the Legislature. Anything that could save consumers money deserves such consideration, but right now we're inclined to say thanks, but no thanks.
Among those who aren't fond of the proposal are some Republicans, who claim the Michigan Catastrophic Claims Association manages the $14.2 billion fund well. What's more, the $1 million cap Snyder proposed can be met quickly in particularly complicated injury cases.
It felt funny hearing Snyder call for such a reform a year after signing off on the helmet repeal.
Traffic deaths rose 5.3 percent in the state last year and motorcycle fatalities were up 18 percent. The number of riders killed went from five in 2011 to 55 the following year. The statistics don't document which cases involved riders without helmets, but it's hard not to believe there's a correlation.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has seen motorcycle crashes rise in every state that has rejected helmet laws and adds that motorcyclists, helmets or not, are 37 percent more likely to die in a crash than Americans driving or riding in cars.
So Michigan allows motorcyclists — whose injuries often can demand expensive long-term care — to endanger themselves and its governor now wants to limit the amount injured people can be paid for care in the event of a critical crash.
That doesn't make much sense.
