House Bill 0269

    Florida House of Representatives - 2000                 HB 269

        By Representative Bitner






  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to nursing home facilities;

  3         amending s. 400.235, F.S.; providing a

  4         limitation on the recovery of certain costs and

  5         fees in civil actions against a nursing

  6         facility designated as a Gold Seal facility;

  7         providing an effective date.

  8

  9  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

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11         Section 1.  Subsection (9) is added to section 400.235,

12  Florida Statutes, to read:

13         400.235  Nursing home quality and licensure status;

14  Gold Seal Program.--

15         (9)  Any attorney's fees awarded in a civil action

16  under s. 400.023, and any costs awarded for expert witness

17  fees in such an action, against a nursing facility that was,

18  at the time the action was brought, designated as a Gold Seal

19  facility pursuant to this section shall not exceed in the

20  aggregate a total of $50,000.

21         Section 2.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2000.

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24                          HOUSE SUMMARY

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      Limits award of attorney's fees and expert witness costs
26    in a civil enforcement action against a Gold Seal nursing
      facility to an aggregate total of $50,000.
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