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Debate over LTC reform heats up in Florida

LTC Liability Monitor, January 29, 2004

Two months before Florida's legislature is scheduled to meet, trial lawyers and advocacy groups for the elderly are already preparing to stop the nursing home industry's push for litigation protection, reported the Tampa [FL] Tribune.

A Tampa law firm's study suggested that legislative reforms passed in 2001—which capped punitive damage awards and restricted attorneys' fees—decreased the number of lawsuits filed that year against nursing homes by 17%.

However, the state Agency for Health Care Administration found that notices of intent to sue were not on the decline. Industry lobbyists said that many lawsuits are settled out of court before filing, and liability claims have not subsided despite the reform, according to the Tribune.

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