An issue that many lawmakers say is their top priority took a major step Thursday at the Statehouse, as the Senate gave its final approval to a medical malpractice reform bill. It now goes to the House.

The bill would put new limits on malpractice lawsuit awards. A victim would still be able to recover all his actual damages--things like medical and legal bills, lost wages and lost future earnings. But his non-economic damages--things like pain and suffering and loss of enjoyment of life--would be limited to $350,000. If he could prove a doctor or hospital was negligent, he could recover up to $1.1 million, and if he could prove a doctor was reckless there would be no limit.

"For consumers what it means is that a doctor will be available, number one, and hopefully will not be as expensive," said Sen. Glenn McConnell, R-Charleston, main sponsor of the Senate bill.

Doctors rallied at the Statehouse last month in favor of the bill, saying if something isn't done to control their malpractice insurance premiums, your ability to find a doctor when you need one could suffer. Some counties in the state don't have a single OB/GYN doctor because of high insurance premiums for them. And some hospitals don't have a neurosurgeon for the same reason, meaning injured people can't always get the care they need.

But lawyers say this bill won't help consumers at all, and will take away their ability to be fully compensated for a doctor's error.

"It's not going to make a bit of difference in health care costs and probably, not in the long-run, in medical malpractice premiums for the doctors," says Ken Suggs, a Columbia trial lawyer.

"If you look at experience all across the country, states have put on caps and their malpractice premiums keep on going up," he says. "Nevada put on a $350,000 cap three years ago, came back the very next year and asked for a $250,000 cap because the 350-cap didn't do anything for premiums. And since then the $250,000 cap hasn't done anything for premiums, either."

Sen. McConnell admits that the bill is not going to fix the system. "The lawsuit system that we've got, long-term, the public cannot afford," he says. "And so this is a Band-Aid. You need to completely redo it and reduce the availability of lawsuits and how much they can get. It's common sense; the more you pay out the more you've got to pay in."

The bill now goes to the House. A similar House bill has a limit on non-economic damages of $250,000. That's the amount in the original Senate bill, too, but it was raised to $350,000 as part of a compromise to get it passed.

Gov. Mark Sanford also says passing tort reform is one of his top priorities.

Georgia's legislature just passed a tort reform bill, putting more pressure on South Carolina to do the same to compete for businesses that are looking at a state's lawsuit climate when deciding whether to move or expand.