Politics
‘Free kill’ fix moves forward in Senate as survivors argue for medical malpractice reform
Sen. Clay Yarborough’s proposal to fix a long-standing gap in state law that penalizes certain survivors of deaths at the hands of negligent doctors continues to move.
The Appropriations Committee on Health and Human Services is the latest panel to advance SB 734, which Yarborough calls a “clean repeal” of state statute — 768.21(8) — prohibiting adult children and their parents from collecting negligence and non-economic “pain and suffering” damages for medical malpractice.
Yarborough says the current state of play “singled out a narrow group of survivors who cannot recover non-economic damages in the case of a wrongful death due to medical negligence, even though the same damages can be recovered by survivors for a wrongful death that is caused by all other forms of negligence.”
Florida is the only state in the nation with the restriction on its books. Lawmakers passed it in 1990 when the state was trying to rein in increasing medical malpractice costs and attract more doctors to the state.
Yarborough stressed that most doctors do a good job.
“This is in no way a knock against the medical profession or anyone in it because Florida has some of the best health care providers and institutions in the country and beyond. I do not have a statistic to quote, but I will venture to say, we likely have a low single-digit percentage of those in Florida’s health care community that have issues with malpractice or negligence,” Yarborough said, framing his bill as being about “accountability” and “the value of life.”
More than two dozen speakers showed up with passionate cases for or against the legislation.
Opponents made the case that medical malpractice insurance has gotten more expensive and more difficult to procure in the last few years, so the pool of claimants should be expanded.
Tallahassee Memorial Hospital’s Judy Davis, a risk manager, said that “bad, unfortunate outcomes” do happen, but only 1 in 4 of them involve “some degree of negligence.”
“When physicians and hospitals have to pay large sums of money, it does reflect in higher insurance premiums,” Davis said.
Andy Bolin of the Florida Justice Civil Reform Institute said his clients “face the highest medical malpractice premiums” in the U.S. He argued that “infusing” new cases into the system would make that problem worse, and suggested that if the bill must go forward, damages need to be capped.
Associated Industries of Florida’s Adam Basford urged lawmakers to take a “holistic” view of the problem and “mitigate” the impact on providers.
The Florida Chamber’s Carolyn Johnson warned that the bill would increase litigation, insurance rates and health care costs, while decreasing access to care.
Proponents argued that survivors need the opportunity for compensation without caps.
Some told their personal stories of treatment deferred with horrible consequences and no recourse, while their advocates made the larger case for change.
AARP’s Karen Murillo said current law discriminates against older adults, arguing that people are being deprived of justice and rejecting the idea that this class of claimants should be held responsible for reducing liability for medical providers.
Ethan Perez described maltreatment for his grandfather that included injection with hydrogen peroxide, which an autopsy deemed to be “homicide,” but which was protected under current law.
“Civil lawsuits have an opportunity to reveal criminal wrongdoing,” Perez said, adding that his family is “being left without justice” due to the current “inhumane and barbaric” free kill law.
Lauren Korienko said her mother was found dead in a hospital bed, “covered with blood” after a minor surgery because medical professionals let her bleed to death over the course of 24 hours and succumb to septic shock. Her family was aghast to find they lacked recourse and protection under state law that makes Florida a “sanctuary for medical malpractice.”
Darcy McGill, another person who buried her mother after maltreatment, called Florida’s “free kill” law the state’s “dirty little secret.”
“I’ve yet to hear one good reason why my life is less valuable because I’m married and without children,” McGill said.
After the testimony, Senators diverged on whether the bill could work ahead of the bill moving forward.
Republican Sen. Gayle Harrell said the right move wasn’t this bill, but was to empower the Board of Medicine.
Republican Sen. Jason Brodeur said other states had these provisions without caps, so Florida should as well.
Democrat Sen. Darryl Rouson said the passage of the bill would be a “milestone moment” for people without recourse until now.
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Jesse Scheckner of Florida Politics contributed to this report.
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Politics
Linda McMahon says school choice expansion is ‘a continuing process,’ but will be up to states
Education Secretary Linda McMahon says she and her boss in the White House are both “strong proponents” of school choice, but the federal government’s role in expanding it will be limited under President Donald Trump.
“It’s a continuing process” that must be pursued at the state level, not mandated by Washington, she said.
“The rub is that teacher unions say it’s going to bankrupt the public schools (and serve only students with no other options). I think we’re clearly proving that is not the case.”
McMahon’s comments came Tuesday afternoon during a roundtable discussion on education at the Kendall campus of True North Classical Academy, a charter network operating in Miami-Dade’s unincorporated Kendall neighborhood. It was one of multiple school visits she had planned in the county that day.
Other roundtable participants included, among others, Interim Florida International University President and immediate past Lt. Gov. Jeanette Nuñez, Miami Dade College President Madeline Pumariega, Miami-Dade School Board member Monical Colucci, former state Rep. Michael Bileca, charter school magnate Fernando Zuleta, and former Collier County School Board member Erika Donalds, a pro-charter education activist whose husband, U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds, is the presumptive GOP front-runner in the 2026 Governor’s race.
Zuleta, the founder and President of for-profit charter school management company Academica, said that while Florida has been a leader on school choice, many places in the U.S. remain “choice deserts.”
He urged McMahon to look into the matter. McMahon nodded while he spoke, but made no commitment to do so.
While the U.S. Department of Education’s (USDOE) role in implementing school choice policies will be limited, Donalds hinted that the agency isn’t taking a passive stance on the matter. She said people should “be on the lookout” in the coming days for federal guidance on further empowering parents.
McMahon, a 76-year-old former professional wrestling promoter, past Administrator of the Small Business Administration and ex-member of the Connecticut State Board of Education, reiterated that she has a “mandate” from Trump to abolish the USDOE. Last week, the Department announced it was cutting its staff from some 4,100 employees to 2,200.
That was a “first step” toward fulfilling the President’s wishes of shutting down the agency, she said. She referred to the layoffs as “trimming.”
McMahon said she’s tasking the remaining staff at USDOE staff with assembling a set of guiding principles from which state and local governments can take cues.
“We really want to leave best practice in place to provide states with the right tools,” she said, adding that if she is indeed America’s last Education Secretary, “I will have been successful at my job.”
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Citrus County’s March Madness is a full-court press.
Over 100 Citrus politicians, business owners and community leaders pour into Tallahassee this week for the annual Citrus County Legislative Days.
During a jam-packed two days, Citrus Countians will meet with legislators, agency directors and potentially even First Lady Casey DeSantis to shore up support for local projects and issues of local concern.
The Citrus County Chamber of Commerce and Leadership Citrus sponsor the event.
“One hundred and twenty Citrus County residents will converge on Tallahassee to advocate for everything from the environment to mental health,” Chamber President and CEO Josh Wooten said.
“It’s amazing for two big reasons. One is that so many of us give a darn that they take time out of their busy schedules to spend their money to make the trip. Two is that this unified approach works. In addition to supporting our various agendas with lawmakers, we have had tremendous success over the years corralling dollars from individual agencies like FDOT and DEP.”
The roster of attendees is a who’s who of the Citrus County political landscape: Commissioners Rebecca Bays, Janet Barek (making her first trip), Holly Davis and Diana Finegan; County Administrator Steve Howard; Crystal River City Manager Audra Curts; Crystal River Councilwoman Cindi Frink; School Board members Joe Faherty (whose wife, Dawn, is an aide to freshman Rep. JJ Grow) and Ken Frink; Fifth Judicial Circuit State Attorney Bill Gladson; Superintendent of Schools Scott Hebert; Inverness Councilwoman Crystal Lizanich; Sheriff Dave Vincent; and Tax Collector Janice Warren.
On Wednesday, the Citrus County contingent will fan out across the capital for individual meetings. Some are with just a few people in a legislator’s office. Others involve holding court with top officials including Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson, Florida Department of Transportation Secretary Jared Perdue, Attorney General James Uthmeier and Commerce Secretary Alex Kelly.
Wednesday evening, it’s dinner at the Governor’s Club where top lawmakers are known to stop by.
Bays, the board Chair, said Legislative Days provides valuable interaction with lawmakers on issues close to home.
“It’s truly humbling, as a Commissioner, to see so many businesses and residents come together at the capital to ensure our county’s representation,” she said.
“In addition to our group events, I have scheduled several one-on-one meetings to discuss our county’s needs and explore partnerships in economic development, transportation and the environment. I’m all for collaboration when it comes to tackling the issues we face in the county. With several bills on the horizon that could potentially have negative impacts, it’s crucial to stay vigilant. Citrus County Days provides a great opportunity to do just that.”
On Thursday, a busload of Leadership Citrus participants will arrive for a morning of nonstop speakers at the Tallahassee Community College Center for Innovation. The lineup includes representatives from the Florida Chamber of Commerce, Florida Department of Education and Florida Association of Counties, as well as Grow, an Inverness Republican participating in his first Regular Session.
A luncheon follows. Senate President Ben Albritton was guest speaker last year; this year, Florida’s First Lady is tentatively scheduled as keynote speaker.
“Citrus County is well known for one of the best organized and impactful trips during Session,” said Wooten, the Chamber President. “Our delegation appreciates the support as well.”
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