Gov. Ron DeSantis on Thursday vetoed a bill aimed at clearing the way for some people to pursue medical-malpractice lawsuits over the deaths of family members.
DeSantis, who earlier had indicated he would veto the bill (HB 6017), said during an appearance at Gulf Coast Medical Center in Fort Myers that the proposal could “open flood gates” for litigation.
"We will be vetoing that legislation," the governor announced at the mid-morning briefing.
The bill would have repealed a long-controversial 1990 law that prevents people ages 25 and older from seeking what are known as “non-economic” damages in medical-malpractice cases involving deaths of their parents.
"The legislature in the past has said you can sue for economic damage. You know, people acted like you couldn't sue at all when this bill was being done. That's not true," DeSantis said. "You could sue and recover economic damages on behalf of that family member, but the legislature previously had limited the non economic damages."
Also, under the law, parents cannot seek such damages in malpractice cases involving the deaths of their children who are 25 or older.
People who allege their family members were killed by malpractice supported the bill throughout this year’s legislative session, arguing that doctors and other health providers are not being held accountable.
But health-care and business groups lobbied against the bill, contending it would drive up malpractice insurance costs and lead to doctors deciding not to practice in Florida.
Those groups and DeSantis argued that a repeal of the 1990 law would need to be coupled with broader caps on non-economic damages in malpractice lawsuits.
“If you don't have those caps, then you really are incentivizing a lot more litigation to take place in the state of Florida,” DeSantis said. “None of that is free lunch. Somebody will have to pay for it. And unfortunately, I think if this bill became law, I do think the cost would be borne by the physicians, who would potentially flee the state, to people that wouldn't have as much access to care.”
Malpractice damage caps have been a political lightning-rod issue for decades, with plaintiffs’ attorneys fighting them.
The Senate on May 1 voted 33-4 to pass the bill after narrowly rejecting an amendment to include caps. The House earlier approved the measure in a 104-6 vote.
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