No More Caps on Cases Against Lee Health Facilities

Lee Health, a popular nonprofit health system in Southwest Florida, has been serving Floridians since 1916. The health system has been public since 1968, but as of November 1st, 2024, the system is now private. While it is possible to sue public health systems for medical malpractice, it is harder for victims to seek satisfactory settlements due to the legal caps imposed by state law.

With Lee Health’s conversion to a private system, there are no longer caps on cases against the system’s facilities for hospital negligence and medical malpractice. However, this does not mean that seeking damages from Lee Health and its insurance company is any easier. If you believe you have a case, a Fort Myers hospital negligence lawyer can review your options. Keep reading to learn more about what these changes to Lee Health mean for patients.

About Lee Health and the Choice to Go Private

Lee Health has long been an important medical provider in Southwest Florida. Lee Health is a community-focused nonprofit provider with multiple hospitals, medical centers, and specialty centers. Some locations include:

• Lee Memorial Hospital
• Gulf Coast Medical Center
• Golisano Children’s Hospital of Southwest Florida
• Lee Health Regional Cancer Center
• Cape Coral Hospital
• Lee Health Coconut Point Bonita Health Center
• Shipley Cardiothoracic Center

Legislation changes and trying to compete with other providers made the choice of going private attractive to the hospital board. In 2023, the board started evaluating the benefits of this conversion and taking the necessary steps to complete it. An October 30th, 2024 press release from the system reported that earlier in the month, the board approved this conversion.

Health Systems and Caps on Cases: What Does it All Mean?

While litigation against public and private entities is quite complex, we can help you understand this important change in Lee Health’s structure and operations.

Sovereign Immunity and Public Hospitals

A public hospital is owned by a government entity. Prior to the conversion of Lee Health, Lee County owned the healthcare system. Government agencies are protected by a law known as sovereign immunity, outlined in Florida Statutes § 768.28.

Sovereign immunity for a hospital means that facilities are protected legally and financially. Here’s what that looks like in practice:

• Under these laws, employees cannot be sued. Instead, victims must sue the health system to seek damages.
• When suing a public health system, the damages that victims can seek are capped. The caps range from $200,000 to $300,000. Even if a jury awards more than these caps, victims can only receive damages up to the legal limits.

For many medical malpractice victims, these limits are far from fair. Malpractice can cause serious, lifelong harm, and the payout can quickly dry up when addressing intense medical needs, lost income, and associated expenses and losses. While these public entities can agree to pay victims more than these limits depending on insurance coverage, this does not guarantee higher offers for malpractice patients.

State law does allow victims to file a claims bill for damages beyond these limitations, but this is an incredibly complicated process. There is no guarantee of approval for a claims bill, meaning victims are left with even more expenses and debt. Patients are, understandably, intimidated and overwhelmed by any fights against public health entities.

Private Hospitals Lack Such Protections

With this conversion, Lee Health is no longer protected by sovereign immunity. Any victims of medical malpractice at the hands of Lee Health providers now have the opportunity to pursue full compensation for their losses.

While Lee Health is dedicated to exceptional care, the hospital and its providers can make mistakes that cost patients their health and even their lives. Now, victims have a chance to hold negligent parties accountable.

Pursuing a Malpractice Case Against Lee Health

While this change is good news for injured people, it does not change the complex nature of malpractice claims. Lee Health has a lot more to lose now, and the hospitals and insurance companies will fight any claims of negligence and wrongdoing.

If these parties even admit to fault, they may not offer a fair settlement to address your losses. That’s where a Fort Myers medical malpractice lawyer from our firm can be of service.

We have spent over 45 years helping people just like you hold healthcare providers and medical facilities responsible for negligence. We have seen firsthand how costly a victim’s losses can be, and we’ve made it our mission to help our community seek the maximum compensation possible from hospitals like Lee Health.

What Types of Cases Can I Seek Against Lee Health?

Hospitals and other facilities in the Lee Health system address many medical needs and offer a variety of services to patients. Some potential cases we can help you with include:

• Surgical errors
• Birth injuries
• Pediatric injuries
• Medication errors
• Cancer malpractice, including misdiagnosis
• Anesthesia errors
• Cardiac malpractice, including heart attack malpractice
• Stroke misdiagnosis or delayed diagnosis
• Emergency room errors
• Sepsis due to negligence

Whether you were injured at one of the facilities in Fort Myers or other cities in Lee County, our firm can help.

How Do I Know If I Have a Case Against Lee Health Facilities?

Proving malpractice is a complicated process. There are many nuances to these claims that are easy to miss. When looking at a potential claim, there are key questions your lawyers must ask:

• Did a professional relationship exist between you and the provider?
• Did this provider’s level of care meet the standards of the profession? Would another provider with the same skills and training have given you the same level of care?
• Were these actions, or lack of actions, the cause of your injuries?
• Do you have injuries and losses associated with this negligent care?

Not every negative outcome of medical care is an example of malpractice. It’s up to a Fort Myers personal injury lawyer to review your potential claim against Lee Health facilities.

Get Help With a Lee Health Facility Malpractice Claim

With these changes removing caps on cases against Lee Health, you now have a chance to hold negligent providers liable for your harm or the injury or death of a loved one. These limits previously stood in the way of accountability, but now our firm has the chance to fight for what you deserve.

Our medical malpractice lawyers have multiple, multi-million-dollar results against healthcare providers across the state, and we’re ready to help you today. Call Freidin Brown, P.A. now for a free consultation.