Florida should repeal ‘free kill’ law | Column

It should be a bright, red flag that Florida is the only state with this special protection for negligent practitioners.

 A billboard reads: “END THE FLORIDA  FREE KILL LAW; REPEAL STATUTE 768.21(8); EndTheFloridaFreeKillLaw.US; PAID FOR BY MARY JO CAIN REIS, is near the intersection South Semoran Boulevard & Gatlin Avenue in Orlando, on Thursday, November 2, 2023. [ RICARDO RAMIREZ BUXEDA | Orlando Sentinel ]

March 27, 2025 – Scott Maxwell

You may have read about something known as Florida’s “free kill” law — a bizarre law that exists only in Florida.

It basically says that, even if you can prove that a health care provider’s negligent actions killed an adult member of your family, you can’t sue for pain and suffering — unless the dead family member has a spouse or minor children.

In other words, the lives of single Floridians, including widows and widowers and those over 25 who haven’t yet married, are worth less here. The law essentially channels George Orwell’s satirical declaration that all animals are equal — but some are more equal than others.

If you know nothing else about this law, it should be a bright, red flag that Florida is the only state with this special protection for negligent practitioners.

Well, after decades of criticism, there’s momentum to change that. A repeal bill has already cleared several committees this legislative session with broad bipartisan support.

But first, it’s worth understanding how Florida ended up with a law like this is the first place — namely because Florida lawmakers have systematically stripped you of your rights to sue companies that do you wrong.

You’ve seen it before. Most recently, GOP lawmakers teamed up with insurance lobbyists to make it harder for you to sue your insurance company — even when your company tries to stiff you out of benefits to which you’re clearly entitled.

The rationale for stripping you of your right to go after bad actors is usually the same: Businesses shouldn’t be bothered with frivolous lawsuits. They drive up everyone’s costs.

But these laws strip everyone’s access to the courts, not just frivolous filers. And the arguments about savings for consumers are usually a bunch of trickle-down fiction. On the heels of Florida’s so-called insurance “reform,” rates shot up for nine consecutive quarters. And “free kill” critics say Florida never saw the benefits that health care lobbyists promised in exchange for shielding negligent doctors and hospitals from lawsuits.

South Florida Republican Rep. Hillary Cassel lit into a health-care lobbyist last week when he made another round of dubious claims, suggesting that repealing this law would simply enrich estranged family members looking for a cash grab. Cassel said the representative for the Florida Chamber of Commerce-created Florida Justice Reform Institute didn’t have “an ounce of data to support that,” calling the claims “scare tactics.”

Florida’s business lobby does more than just try to scare lawmakers, though. It also threatens them.

In 2021, the Florida Chamber of Commerce warned that any lawmaker who voted in favor of repealing the “free kill” law that year would have their vote negatively double-weighted in the chamber’s annual “How They Voted” report card, according to a Tampa TV station. (The report card lets business lobbyists know which politicians will follow their orders and are consequently worthy of endorsements and campaign checks.)

The Chamber wields this double-counting strategy when it knows it’s on the wrong side of public opinion and needs to exert extra pressure. It used a similar tactic last year when pressuring lawmakers to make it illegal for Florida counties to pass laws that would guarantee outdoor workers the right to things like shade and water on blistering hot days — a law I dubbed “The most shameful law Florida passed this year.”

Historically, the heavy-handed lobbying tactics have been effective with both parties. Democrats, after all, controlled Florida when the “free kill” provision was enacted in 1990. But this year, both parties seem poised to push back, probably because the horror stories are piling up: A father who died after being given a toxic dose of medication. Or a son whose routine hospital visit ended in death.

This year’s measure that would repeal Florida’s “free kill” provision, HB 6017, has passed committees with votes along the lines of 20-1. Its local sponsors include Democrat Johanna Lopez with co-sponsorship from Republican Susan Plasencia and Democrat Anna Eskamani.

Lawmakers were moved by stories they’ve heard from people like Mary Jo Cain Reis, who says her father died of medical negligence. “These bad doctors and medical personnel cannot continue to keep killing people and be able to move on,” said Reis, who put up billboards in Central Florida that called for reform. “There needs to be accountability.”

Theoretically, the state has other accountability measures for medical negligence. Families can still sue for economic damages. But complaints to the state are often ignored or slow-rolled. A 2018 investigation by the South Florida Sun Sentinel found Florida’s system was slow to punish doctors and quick to let them settle charges without accepting responsibility.

Certainly some doctors make earnest mistakes. Some are unfairly sued. But Florida’s “free kill” law doesn’t address that. It just says that a health care provider could negligently kill your 75-year-old mother without being sued for pain and suffering — as long as your mom isn’t still married. And what kind of sense does that make?

Not much, even according to one physician and former GOP legislator who urged lawmakers to repeal Florida’s “free kill” law this year. As Florida Politics reported, Dr. Joel Rudman told lawmakers to ignore the scare tactics. “Doctors aren’t going to leave Florida because of this bill — no good doctor,” Rudman said. “If a bad doctor wants to leave, bye.”

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