HOLLYWOOD, Fla. - Florida doctors are considering whether to try to change the state Constitution to further limit malpractice lawsuits, two weeks after Gov. Jeb Bush signed a hard-fought law that caps certain damages.
The Florida Medical Association will decide at a closed session of its annual meeting today whether to pursue two constitutional amendments, said its president, Dr. Robert E. Cline.
Cline said one proposal would cap noneconomic damages in malpractice lawsuits. The other would limit attorneys' contingency fees.
Cline said victims collect about half the money from medical malpractice settlements, with the rest going to attorneys. "We don't think it's fair to injured patients," he said.
He said the amendment to cap damages is needed in part because the new law likely will be challenged in court.
The group would need to collect about 600,000 signatures for each issue and get Supreme Court approval of the wording to get them on the ballot. Neal Roth, a malpractice attorney and one of the trial bar's chief lobbyists against caps, did not return telephone messages Friday.
The bill Bush signed limits a doctor's liability for noneconomic damages in most malpractice cases to $500,000. A medical facility's liability is limited to $750,000 in most cases. Multiple victims could get more with multiple lawsuits.
