Bill headed to governor's desk would strip age limit policy from Florida malpractice lawsuits
The Brief
A bill is headed to the governor's desk that would strip the age limit policy from Florida malpractice lawsuits.
The current state law bans adults older than 25 from suing on behalf of their parents if they die due to medical negligence.
Also, parents can't file wrongful death lawsuits for their children if they're older than 25.
TALLAHASSEE - If someone dies due to medical negligence in Florida, the ages of the victim and their loved ones determine whether families can sue for medical malpractice. Governor DeSantis could soon change that.
What they're saying
"You can't put a price on a life. The victims and the families of wrongful death due to medical malpractice deserve this bill," Democratic State Senator Carlos Guillermo Smith said.
Current state law bans adults older than 25 from suing on behalf of their parents if they die due to medical negligence.
Also, parents can't file wrongful death lawsuits for their children if they're older than 25. HB 6017, which is now headed to the Governor's desk, would strip the age limit policy from the law.
The other side
"This is going to have a devastating impact on medical malpractice premiums both for hospitals and for providers," Republican State Senator Gayle Harrell said.
Harrell, who is a major opponent of the legislation, argues if passed it would be a disaster for the state's healthcare system.
"We are gonna have physicians not coming to the state of Florida. We already have the highest, the highest med-mal premiums in the entire state of Florida," Harrell said.
Stacey Waner is one of the families pushing for the bill's passage after she was prevented from suing on behalf of her brother Trevor Synder. In 2019, he died while in the care of doctors after he broke his leg in a motorcycle accident.
"Had the hospital done their job, he would be here," Waner said. "He was an otherwise healthy kid, and he shouldn't have died from a broken leg. There's no reason for it."
She believes changing the law would mean more accountability in the medical field.
"Negligence still has be proven the same way. Malpractice still has been proven in the same manner that has to proven in court. The only thing it does, it really gives people standing," Attorney Anthony Rickman said.
READ: Budget talks moving slowly in Tallahassee
Earlier this month, the bill passed in the House 33-4 getting major bi-partisan support.
"We're talking about a small group of individuals and this is a very good bill to bring them justice," Democratic State Senator Jason Pizzo said.
FOX 13 reached out to the governor's office for comment on whether he plans to sign the bill, and we are still waiting to hear back. There has been no word yet on when he will make a decision.
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The Source
Information for this story was gathered by FOX 13's Jordan Bowen.
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