Prop 46 animated explainer: Drug testing doctors, medical malpractice damages

Prop 46 is trying to do three main things:

1) Increase the amount you can sue a doctor for non-economic losses -- things like pain and suffering -- from $250,000 to $1.1 million, and then adjust that amount for inflation in future years.

2) Make doctors submit to drug and alcohol testing.

3) Require health care workers to check a statewide prescription drug database before prescribing certain addictive drugs to prevent patients from abusing the system by getting multiple prescriptions from multiple doctors.

These new rules will add costs for state and local governments who pay for many health care services, and for doctors who will have to pay more for their insurance, too.

Supporters of this prop claim that a decrease in medical negligence could help balance out some of these new costs.

Voting YES means you support:

- Increasing the amount for non-economic damages in malpractice lawsuits.

- Drug and alcohol testing of doctors.

- Requiring health care providers to check a statewide database before prescribing certain drugs.

Voting NO means:

- You do not support the three things listed above.