FORT MYERS, Fla. – Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis vetoed a bill on Thursday that sought to expand lawsuits by some people pursuing medical-malpractice claims involving the deaths of family members.
DeSantis made the veto announcement during a news conference with Florida Department of Health Surgeon General, Dr. Joe Ladapo, in Fort Myers.
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DeSantis said the proposal (HB 6017) to repeal a long-controversial 1990 law, dubbed “Free Kill Law,” would’ve caused insurance premiums to “skyrocket” by allowing people to expand economic damage claims to include non-economic damages.
“It would lead to higher costs for Floridians, it would lead to less access to care for Floridians, and it would make it harder for us to keep, recruit and maintain physicians in the state of Florida,” DeSantis said.
Press play above to watch DeSantis’ remarks on the veto
Under the 1990 law, people who are 25 years old or older cannot seek what are known as “non-economic” damages in medical-malpractice cases involving deaths of their parents. Also, parents cannot seek such damages in malpractice cases involving the deaths of their children who are 25 or older.
The bill was strongly supported during the 2025 legislative session by people who allege their family members were killed by medical malpractice.
“The vast majority of states have caps on what can be recovered in terms of non-economic damages, and if you don’t have those caps, then you really are incentivizing a lot more litigation to take place in the state of Florida,” DeSantis said. “None of that is free, free lunch. Somebody will have to pay for it.”