Trial Attorneys Put Human Side of Medical Error on Display

Victims of medical malpractice and their family members gathered today in Tallahassee to lobby against legislation that would cap damages against emergency room personnel.

The Florida Justice Association (FJA), which represents trial attorneys, organized a news conference for the victims and their family members.

Pointing to the 20 people around him, who were all carrying signs with photos of their loved ones impacted by medical malpractice, Marcus Michaels of the FJA said, “These are the representatives of the human cost of medical negligence.”

FJA and the victims were in Tallahassee to protest legislation looking to cap malpractice costs.

Sen. John Thrasher, R-Jacksonville, has sponsored a bill that would grant emergency room doctors, nurses and paramedics sovereign immunity. It is awaiting a vote in the Senate. It would lower the maximum amount emergency room personnel can be sued from $150,000 to $100,000.

The Senate Banking and Insurance Committee had the bill on the calendar for Tuesday’s committee meeting. However, the meeting ran long and the measure was not taken up.

The FJA and some of the victims and their families vowed to return if the legislation is scheduled for future meetings.

In an analysis of the legislation, the FJA maintained, “The proposed legislation brazenly assumes that we, Florida’s taxpayers, are able to pick up the tab run up by a negligent health care provider after the victim’s family has reached a state of financial ruin.”

Michaels was more succinct in his comments. “Every dollar over $100,000 is being paid by whom?” he asked before answering, “You. And me. And the taxpayers.”

Michaels said, “This legislation would mean millions and millions of tangible debt will fall to the taxpayers.”

William Large, president of the Florida Justice Reform Institute, strongly supports Thrasher’s bill. “There is an incredible burden on emergency medical providers."

Noting that emergency room personnel must treat everyone, Large compared doctors and nurses to firefighters and police officers. “They have duties and obligations mandated by the state,” he said. “Emergency room workers deserve the same immunities.”

While the Senate measure remains before committee, the House version of the bill, sponsored by Rep. Ronald “Doc” Renuart, R-Ponte Vedra Beach, is not headed to passage during the session. The bill is not scheduled for a committee hearing.

While FJA’s acting Executive Director Debra Henley agrees that the bills will probably not be passed in 2010, she thinks they will be brought back in 2011. “We’re going to educate people on the fiscal impact of these bills,” she said. “We hope that the emphasis will stay on the patients.”

Jonathan Maxim attended the events on behalf of his daughter, Julie Rutherford. Rutherford suffered a stroke due to emergency room malpractice during her last trimester.

After spending years in a coma, Rutherford is now confined to a nursing home.

Said Maxim, “By holding the doctors accountable, it will ensure that what happened to Julie will not happen to anyone else.”