Resort Injury Lawyer Blog

More concerns regarding the healthcare and welfare of Florida citizens are in the spotlight with yet another reform bill passed last Thursday in the Florida Senate's budget committee.

The Medicaid reform bill seeks to expand the role of HMOs, doctor- and hospital-based networks, and other managed-care companies, allowing them almost full control of managing the Medicaid system, in order to reduce long-term costs, reported the Miami Herald.

The bill also proposes to limit lawsuits against some private medical school personnel, developmental-disability group homes and nursing homes.

It would also place a $250,000 limit on non-economic damages in wrongful-death lawsuits against nursing homes and also make it harder to sue for punitive damages.

Politicians claim that since Medicaid providers act as agents of the state, they should receive state protection.

The bill attempts to make it easier for the state to manage and avoid fraudulent claims, by ending the 'fee-for-service' system which currently pays about 80,000 providers for each service performed, and transitioning to a managed care system, whereby insurance companies would receive a capped amount to serve a patient.

Would you want to be treated by a doctor with 3 or more medical malpractice convictions?

Florida Senate Bill 1676 is aiming to allow for just that.

Citing concerns that the physician's practice environment in Florida is hindering the attraction of doctors to practice in Florida, the bill seeks to reverse Amendment 8 (s.26, Article X) which prohibits people who have been found to have committed three or more incidents of medical malpractice from being licensed by the State of Florida to provide health care services as a medical doctor.

SB1676 seeks to provide sovereign immunity to medical schools and their employees who provide patient services in public teaching hospitals, limiting the medical schools' liability to $200,000 and providing personal immunity to the doctors.

On April 4, The Senate Health Regulation Committee approved SB1676 in a 11-1 vote. The bill must now pass through two additional Senate committees.

As The Cruise Vessel Security and Safety Act is being considered for global implementation by the International Maritime Organization (IMO), more international cruise ship incidents continue to occur.

Minor Abused on Carnival Cruise Ship

Last week, it was reported in Alabama that the U.S. Attorney's office in Mobile arrested a 19-year-old for abusing a minor on the Carnival Cruise Ship Elation, in international waters. The teen was transported to a Federal Courthouse in Mobile after the FBI investigated the matter, and the U.S. Attorney's office will prosecute the matter.

Girl Missing from Disney Wonder Cruise Ship

A 24-year-old girl working as part of the youth program on the Disney Wonder cruise ship has been missing for two weeks, after departing Los Angeles for a week along the Mexican Riviera. The Disney Wonder is registered in The Bahamas, where local police reportedly said they have found no evidence suggesting foul play.

Ill Passenger on Stretcher Dropped into Icy Seas

A British woman who became seriously ill with internal bleeding while on the Ocean Princess in Norway was being taken off the ship by emergency crews when she was dropped into the icy sea. A report states that the vessels weren't latched together and suddenly moved apart as she was being transferred off the ship. This caused rescue crews to drop the stretcher into the water, which was reported to have been minus 3 degrees that day. The woman was reportedly in the water for approximately 8 minutes.

Resort Torts are cases of civil liability for negligent or criminal acts that arise out of a resort, vacation or recreational setting. These can involve aspects of hotel and motel safety, cruise ship litigation, pleasure boating and jet ski incidents, amusement, aquatic, diving and swimming incidents, foreign travel and medical emergencies, gaming and casinos, aviation (commercial and general), rental car liability, moped, bicycle and motorcycle safety, buses and tour guides, travel industry liability for crime victims, and medical care provided to vacationers. Resort Torts can encompass a vast array of types of cases but they all have one thing in common: tourists, business travelers and locals alike are all exposed to risk while traveling, vacationing or engaging in resort or pleasure activities.