Patients who choose arbitration to settle disputes with physicians would have to present their cases to a three-member panel under a bill passed Monday in the Utah Senate. Bipartisan opponents said the bill would make arbitration more expensive than necessary.
This year's Senate Bill 245 allows patients to demand mediation in a dispute, followed by binding arbitration if mediation doesn't work. A three-member arbitration panel would consist of one person chosen by the patient, one by the physician and a third jointly selected. It also would shorten the time from 30 days to 10 days that a patient can opt out of a signed arbitration agreement.