Florida Personal Injury Lawyer Blog

In yet another blow to Florida victims of medical malpractice , the Florida Supreme Court ruled that hospitals are not required to verify that their staff physicians carry medical malpractice insurance. This ruling essentially allows doctors to disregard Florida Statute Section 458.720 which requires them to have medical malpractice insurance if they are on a hospital staff. Without hospitals verifying that their staff doctors are complying with their statutory insurance requirements, those doctors will have one less reason to purchase malpractice insurance.

Too often in our practice we see Florida doctors going "bare," that is, not having medical malpractice insurance to protect their patients in the event a procedure or treatment is performed negligently and results in personal injury or wrongful death. Usually it is the office based doctor, one who doesn't venture into hospitals, who has chosen not to carry insurance; but now, with this ruling, there will certainly be a significant increase in surgeons who decide not to get insurance, leaving their patients without an avenue of recovery if something goes wrong.

Considering the profits hospitals make by allowing doctors to operate in their facilities, we would certainly hope that the legislature acts to rectify this omission in Florida Law.

Posted by Joseph I. Lipsky | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Medical Malpractice

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In another example of the State of Florida's Agency for Health Care Administration's continuing failure to adequately monitor physicians under its charge, Dr. Alex Zakharia is still on the active staffs at numerous Miami hospitals despite an admitted memory problem and pending perjury and fraud charges.

Dr. Zakharia, age 69, a Miami surgeon specializing in heart surgery, apparently suffers from increasing memory losses, due to a number of TIA (trans ischemic attack) he suffered in the last few years. Despite those worsening memory problems, and his role as the surgeon involved in a number of patients' deaths, a number of which resulted in medical malpractice claims, the State of Florida has not seen fit to suspend his ability to operate.

We are continually amazed at the State's lack of action in their monitoring of physicians, especially those involved in multiple patient deaths. We have unfortunately represented a number of families whose loved ones died from egregious malpractice. Yet despite our reporting those incidents to the State, including one doctor who changed medical records following the death of an infant, the State never issued more than a slap on the hand. Hopefully, as the public's awareness regarding such doctors grows, the State will be forced to deal with these matters in a manner which will better protect the public.

Posted by Joseph I. Lipsky | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Medical Malpractice

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Many of our client's are surprise to learn that anyone injured by the negligent actions of any employee of the State of Florida, any of its political subdivisions, including those employees of a County or City, is limited, regardless of how seriously they are injured, to a maximum recovery of $100,000.00. This limitation or cap, which applies to car accidents, slip and falls, and even medical malpractice occurring at a County run hospital, is known as sovereign immunity.

The Florida Legislature passed this law, known as Florida Statute section 768.28, to shield governments from paying for all of the damages caused by their employee's negligence, while allegedly giving accident victims a source of recovery. Unfortunately, for Florida accident victims, especially those who are catastrophically injured, the $100,000.00 cap is woefully inadequate.

Only in the rarest of circumstances does the Florida Legislature entertain, much less pass, a "Claims Bill," which may provide an accident victim with a greater recovery, only if the Legislature and the Governor enact a specific law to help a specifically injured person. Even when the governmental entity, which caused the catastrophic injury, wants to pay the accident victim more than the $100,000.00 cap, the victim must go through the difficult process of pursing a Claims Bill.

We represented an unfortunate boy who sustained a near drowning, resulting in him being in a coma and ultimately dieing. Despite the agreement of the school district responsible for his brain damage, to pay an increased amount, the Florida Legislature delayed our client's recovery for more than 2 years.

We strongly believe this law and the procedures necessary to pursue claims against the government, needs to be changed.

Posted by Joseph I. Lipsky | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Car Accidents , Medical Malpractice , Slip/Trip and Fall

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In yet another example of the lack of supervision and inspection by the State of Florida, a group home for disabled children was finally closed down after a 12 year old autistic boy stopped breathing on a filed trip, and is now on a ventilator. Employees of the Rainbow Ranch Group Home attempted to forcibly restrain the child while in the group home's van.

Despite numerous past allegations of malpractice, including over medication, sexual abuse and malnourishment, The State of Florida did not close this facility until after this this tragic incident.

In our practice, we have unfortunately assisted numerous families with disabled children who are victims, either intentionally or negligently, of abuse and neglect at the hands of under-trained and not supervised group home workers.

Unfortunately, this is just another incident, in a long line of catastrophic injuries and deaths, which have occurred in disabled homes in Florida. We can only hope that the State of Florida will finally pay the proper attention to this growing epidemic and properly monitor these facilities.

Posted by Joseph I. Lipsky | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Medical Malpractice

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In yet another blow to Florida residents and visitors, the Florida Supreme Court ruled that on-board doctors are not considered employees of the cruise lines who hire them. This means that the cruise lines are not responsible if those doctors commit malpractice while treating a passenger on board their ship.

The effect of this ruling is simple, if you are mistreated or injured due to the negligent actions of an on-board doctor, you cannot sue the cruise line for that doctor's negligent actions. Considering that most on-board doctors are from other countries and do not have malpractice insurance, it is likely that the injured victim will be unable to recovery anything for the damages they suffer at the hands of an on-board doctor.

Having represented dozens of cruise ship passengers, we cannot understand how an on-board doctor, who is specifically placed on a ship by the cruise line, for the benefit of their paying passengers, cannot be an employee of that cruise line. Cruise line passengers have no choice in the medical care they receive as they are essentially captive and in many instances, unable to leave the ships. If a passenger falls victim to illness, or sustains an on-board injury, such as a slip and fall, their only hope for medical care is with the on-board doctor.

Now, given the Court's ruling, passengers on cruise ships, whose tickets require them to file lawsuits in Florida, will be unable to hold the cruise line responsible for an on-board doctor's negligence.

Posted by Joseph I. Lipsky | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Medical Malpractice

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Florida Laws relating to medical malpractice cases do not allow adult children, whose parents die from medical malpractice, to recover damages from the wrongful death of their parents. In all other types of cases, in which a parent dies from the negligence of another, including car accidents, truck accident or even boating accidents, an adult child, that is, someone older than 25, may recover for their parent's wrongful death, assuming that parent is unmarried at the time of their death.

A number of years ago, doctors and hospitals convinced the Florida Legislature to pass a law excluding adult survivors of medical malpractice victims as Plaintiffs. This means, if you are 25 or older, and your parent is divorced or a widow(er) when they die from medical malpractice, then you are precluded from recovering pain and suffering damages against the doctor or hospital who caused their death.

The Florida Supreme Court has also recently issued an opinion holding this law, which protects doctors and hospitals, to the detriment of all surviving adult children, is constitutional. We have had to regrettably turn away numerous clients, who not only suffered due to the loss of their parent, but are doubly injured by their inability to seek justice on behalf of their deceased parent.

We can only hope that enough Floridians become aware of this limitation and write to their legislators to try to correct this inequity.

Posted by Joseph I. Lipsky | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: Medical Malpractice

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