Fla. Med-Mal Special Session Canceled

A special legislative session on medical malpractice reform that was supposed to begin Aug. 5 in Florida has been canceled by Gov. Jeb Bush due to lack of agreement among lawmakers on key issues.

In canceling the special session, Bush issued the following statement:

“The Florida Legislature continues to work toward a real solution to the malpractice insurance crisis that threatens Floridians’ access to healthcare. We are making incremental progress toward reform that will stabilize the situation and protect our residents.

“Through compromise, we’re building common ground between conflicting viewpoints. However, until we reach agreement on key elements of reform, including reasonable caps for non-economic damages and bad faith provisions, there is no reason to call an immediate special session. I look forward to building on our progress to date, in continued discussions with lawmakers, to achieve a workable resolution that protects access to care in Florida.

“I am disappointed by the slow pace of progress on this critical issue. However, I am encouraged by the good faith effort of many lawmakers to do the work of the people, in a manner that best serves the people. I remain hopeful this spirit of service will prevail, and that we will ultimately achieve meaningful reform to fix a system that is so clearly broken.”