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Florida Constitution Revision Commission

PUB 700564: No Year Limits on Medical Practice Claims for Severe Injury or Death by Natasha Edwards

ARTICLE X: MISCELLANEOUS, Section 1. Amendments to United States Constitution.

SECTION 1.Amendments to United States Constitution.

The legislature shall not take action on any proposed amendment to the constitution of the United States unless a majority of the members thereof have been elected after the proposed amendment has been submitted for ratification.

ARTICLE X: MISCELLANEOUS, Section 25. Patients’ right to know about adverse medical incidents.

SECTION 25.Patients’ right to know about adverse medical incidents.
  1. In addition to any other similar rights provided herein or by general law, patients have a right to have access to any records made or received in the course of business by a health care facility or provider relating to any adverse medical incident.
  2. In providing such access, the identity of patients involved in the incidents shall not be disclosed, and any privacy restrictions imposed by federal law shall be maintained.
  3. For purposes of this section, the following terms have the following meanings:
    1. The phrases "health care facility" and "health care provider" have the meaning given in general law related to a patient's rights and responsibilities.
    2. The term "patient" means an individual who has sought, is seeking, is undergoing, or has undergone care or treatment in a health care facility or by a health care provider.
    3. The phrase "adverse medical incident" means medical negligence, intentional misconduct, and any other act, neglect, or default of a health care facility or health care provider that caused or could have caused injury to or death of a patient, including, but not limited to, those incidents that are required by state or federal law to be reported to any governmental agency or body, and incidents that are reported to or reviewed by any health care facility peer review, risk management, quality assurance, credentials, or similar committee, or any representative of any such committees.
    4. The phrase "have access to any records" means, in addition to any other procedure for producing such records provided by general law, making the records available for inspection and copying upon formal or informal request by the patient or a representative of the patient, provided that current records which have been made publicly available by publication or on the Internet may be "provided" by reference to the location at which the records are publicly available.

 

All to often patients are finding out near the end of limitations or after the two year limitation of severe gross negligence Medical Mal Practice. The same for the families of patients that have died. as the result of gross negligence Medical Mal Practice.

The assumption that the patient or family member should have known is false. They find out when they find out. Consequently it usually little to no time to gather evidence for their claim against the medical practitioner.

The State of Florida introduced a new bill for patients that find out about procedure unauthorized that caused damage to be addressed. However the two year limit does not match this new law and attorney's are not will to take the risk on a case that may never make it to court due to time limitations.

No limit will not cause an over flow of cases, but rather give meritted cases equal justice. The two year limit is also unfair to attorneys who are certified Medical Mal Practice attorneys. That is their source of living. One or two cases a year is not enough to continue a practice.

The Two Year Limit Should Be Revoked. It only aides the physicians and insurance companies while there are permanently injured patients or dead ones.