Medical Malpractice Caps on Damages

Table of Contents

Medical Malpractice Caps on Damages

Medical malpractice caps on damages exist in nearly 30 states. Florida is one of them. Victims can recover the value of their economic damages, but compensatory damages overall are limited in that non-economic damages are capped depending on who is found to have acted negligently.

Florida Malpractice Caps on Damages

Economic damages, such as medical bills and lost wages, are not capped. Therefore, if you have $1 million in medical bills, you may be reimbursed for the full amount without any restrictions. When it comes to non-economic damages, however, you may encounter some restrictions.

Non-economic damages are capped at $500,000 if a practitioner is found to have acted negligently, but the cap is raised to $1 million for cases in which a patient is left in a permanent vegetative state or dies. In emergency situations, though, caps are placed at $150,000.

Meanwhile, caps on non-economic damages are $750,000 if a non-practitioner is found to have acted negligently to cause injury to the patient, or $1.5 million if the patient is left in a permanent vegetative state or dies.

To complicate matters further, there is the case of sovereign immunity. This means that public hospitals cannot be sued because they are considered public entities. Florida has a $200,000 limit for cases involving sovereign immunity, but a claims bill –which must be approved by the state legislature – may allow victims to recover a greater amount. For example, according to a Tampa Bay Times report from March 2012, a child who suffered a severe brain injury during birth at a public hospital 14 years ago was awarded $15 million through a claims bill.

Contacting an Injury Law Firm in Florida

If you were injured because of medical malpractice or in dental malpractice Florida, your compensation may be limited through damage caps. the law offices of Wolf & Pravato is an injury firm in South Florida that can handle your claim and help you recover the damages to which you are entitled.