Senate Bill sb1726
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Florida Senate - 2004 (NP) SB 1726
By Senators Cowin and Dockery
20-313A-04
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to Lake County; amending
3 chapter 93-346, Laws of Florida; providing for
4 liens in favor of physicians licensed under
5 chapter 458 or chapter 459, Florida Statutes,
6 in Lake County upon causes of action, suits,
7 claims, counterclaims, and demands accruing to
8 patients who received physician services in
9 Lake County hospitals, or the patients' legal
10 representatives, and upon judgments,
11 settlements, and settlement agreements, on
12 account of illness or injury of such patients,
13 for all reasonable charges incurred before
14 filing the claim of lien for physician services
15 rendered in the hospital; providing for a
16 method of perfecting and enforcing such liens;
17 providing duties of the Clerk of the Circuit
18 Court of Lake County; requiring claims for
19 liens to be recorded and providing for
20 recording fees; providing for validity of a
21 release or satisfaction of an action, suit,
22 claim, counterclaim, demand, judgment,
23 settlement, or settlement agreement against a
24 lien under certain circumstances; specifying
25 actions constituting impairment of a lien;
26 entitling lienholders to actions for damages
27 for such impairment; specifying actions in
28 satisfaction of a lien; providing for recovery
29 of attorney's fees and expenses under certain
30 circumstances; prohibiting recovery of damages
31 for physician and hospital care, treatment, and
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Florida Senate - 2004 (NP) SB 1726
20-313A-04
1 maintenance unless a claimant has paid certain
2 costs; providing an exception; providing for
3 intervention by a lienholder and for verdict
4 and judgment in favor of a lienholder in
5 certain cases; providing an exemption for
6 matters within the purview of the Worker's
7 Compensation Law of this state; providing an
8 effective date.
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10 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
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12 Section 1. Chapter 93-346, Laws of Florida, is amended
13 to read:
14 Section 1. Each Every individual, partnership, firm,
15 association, corporation, institution, and governmental unit,
16 and every combination of any of the foregoing, operating a
17 hospital licensed under chapter 395, Florida Statutes, in Lake
18 County, and each physician licensed to practice medicine
19 pursuant to chapter 458 or chapter 459, Florida Statutes, or
20 any governmental agency paying for hospital charges or medical
21 treatment of individuals in Lake County shall have be entitled
22 to a lien subject to the limitations of this act for all
23 reasonable charges for such hospital and physician care,
24 treatment, and maintenance rendered in that hospital, prior to
25 filing the claim of lien, to of all ill or injured persons
26 upon any and all causes of action, suits, claims,
27 counterclaims, and demands, accruing to the persons to whom
28 such care, treatment, or maintenance are furnished, or
29 accruing to the legal representative of such persons, and upon
30 all judgments, settlements, and settlement agreements rendered
31 or entered into by virtue thereof, on account of illness or
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Florida Senate - 2004 (NP) SB 1726
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1 injury giving rise to such causes of action actions, suits,
2 claims, counterclaims, demands, judgments, settlement, or
3 settlement agreements agreement, which necessitated or shall
4 have necessitated such hospital and physician care, treatment,
5 and maintenance. The above-referenced lien shall be limited to
6 the lesser of the following: reasonable charges for care and
7 treatment or two-thirds of the net amount of settlement or
8 judgment after deducting the reasonable cost of procuring the
9 settlement or judgment. Reasonable costs of procuring the
10 settlement or judgment include reasonable attorney's fees.
11 Section 2. In order to perfect such a lien, the
12 physician or the executive officer or duly appointed agent of
13 a hospital or responsible governmental officer shall, before
14 or within 180 days after any such person shall have been
15 discharged from the hospital, file in the office of the Clerk
16 of the Circuit Court in Lake County the county in which the
17 hospital is located, a verified claim in writing setting forth
18 the name and address of the patient as it appears on the
19 records of the hospital or physician, the name and location of
20 the hospital or physician, the name and address of the
21 executive officer or agent of the hospital or physician, the
22 dates of admission to and discharge of the patient therefrom,
23 the amount claimed to be due for the hospital or physician
24 care, treatment, and maintenance rendered in the hospital
25 before the claim of lien was filed, and, to the best knowledge
26 of the person signing the such claim, the names and addresses
27 of all persons, firms, or corporations claimed by such ill or
28 injured person or by the legal representative of such person,
29 to be liable on account of such illness or injury. The
30 hospital shall file the verified claim of lien only as to
31 hospital services rendered by or on behalf of the hospital
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Florida Senate - 2004 (NP) SB 1726
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1 before filing the claim of lien; the physician shall file the
2 verified claim of lien only as to physician services rendered
3 in the hospital by or on behalf of the physician before filing
4 the claim of lien. The lienholder injuries; the claimant shall
5 also, within 7 business days after the filing of such claim of
6 or lien, mail a copy thereof via registered mail, postage
7 prepaid, to each person, firm, or corporation claimed to be
8 liable on account of such illness or injuries, at the address
9 set forth in the verified claim. The filing of the claim shall
10 be notice thereof to all persons, forms, or corporations who
11 may be liable on account of such illness or injury, whether or
12 not they are named in the claim of or lien, and whether or not
13 they have received a copy of the claim shall have been
14 received by them.
15 Section 3. The Clerk of the Circuit Court of Lake
16 County shall endorse on the claim the date and hour of filing
17 and shall record the claim in the official records of Lake
18 County. The Clerk of the Circuit Court of Lake County His
19 office shall be paid by the lienholder claimant, for the
20 filing and recording of each claim, the same fee as provided
21 for filing and recording other instruments under the recording
22 laws.
23 Section 4. A No release or satisfaction of any action,
24 suit, claim, counterclaim, demand, judgment, settlement, or
25 settlement agreement or of any of them is invalid and
26 ineffectual, shall be valid or effectual against such lien
27 unless the lienholder joins shall join therein or executes
28 execute a release of the lien. Any acceptance of a release or
29 satisfaction of any cause of action, suit, claim,
30 counterclaim, demand, or judgment and any settlement of any of
31 the foregoing in the absence of a release or satisfaction of
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Florida Senate - 2004 (NP) SB 1726
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1 lien referred to in this act constitutes shall prima facie
2 evidence of constitute an impairment of the lien, and the
3 lienholder is shall be entitled to an action at law for
4 damages on account of such impairment, and, in such action,
5 may recover from the one accepting the release or satisfaction
6 or making the settlement the reasonable costs cost of the
7 hospital care, treatment, and maintenance. Satisfaction of any
8 judgment rendered in favor of the lienholder in any such
9 action operates shall operate as a satisfaction of the lien.
10 Any action by the lienholder must shall be brought in the
11 court having jurisdiction in the amount of the lienholder's
12 claims claim and may be brought and maintained in Lake County
13 the county in which the lienholder has his, or its, or their
14 residence or place of business. If the lienholder prevails
15 shall prevail in such action, the lienholder is shall be
16 entitled to recover from the defendant, in addition to costs
17 otherwise allowed by law, all reasonable attorney's fees and
18 expenses incident to the matter.
19 Section 5. Notwithstanding the lien created by this
20 act, the amount recovered in a judgment, award, or settlement
21 subject to this act must be distributed and the lien
22 extinguished as follows:
23 (a) After attorney's fees and taxable costs as defined
24 by the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure have been paid, up to
25 60 percent of the remaining amount recovered must be
26 distributed to the lienholders pro rata up to the total amount
27 of reasonable charges for medical services provided in the
28 hospital by the lienholders.
29 (b) At least 40 percent of the remaining amount
30 recovered must be paid to the patient.
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Florida Senate - 2004 (NP) SB 1726
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1 Upon such distribution, the lienholder shall promptly file in
2 the office of the Clerk of the Circuit Court in Lake County a
3 satisfaction of the lien and shall cause it to be recorded in
4 the official records of Lake County.
5 Section 6. For purposes of this act, the reasonable
6 charges due and owing to the lienholder must be determined by
7 reducing the patient's reasonable charges by the amount of any
8 health insurance payment or obligation or any other
9 reimbursement paid or owed to the lienholder on behalf of the
10 patient by any health care policy, plan, or program. The lien
11 may not exceed the amount that the lienholder would be legally
12 entitled to recover directly from the patient after all
13 payments on behalf of the patient have been made by health
14 care policies, plans, or programs to which the patient is
15 legally entitled. If the lienholder's charges are reduced by
16 any third-party payor as a result of any agreement or contract
17 between the lienholder and the third-party payor, or as a
18 result of state or federal law, the patient is entitled to a
19 similar reduction in any copayment charges billed to the
20 patient.
21 Section 7.5. A No person is not shall be entitled to
22 recover or receive damages on account of hospital care,
23 treatment, and maintenance provided by any individual,
24 partnership, firm, association, corporation, institution, or
25 governmental unit or any combination of any of the foregoing,
26 operating a hospital or provided by any physician subject to
27 this act in Lake County unless the person he shall
28 affirmatively shows show that he or she has paid the costs
29 thereof. However, in any action, suit, or counterclaim brought
30 on account of illness or injury, the plaintiff or
31 counterclaimant may include as an item of damages the cost of
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Florida Senate - 2004 (NP) SB 1726
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1 such hospital care, treatment, and maintenance, if, before
2 prior to the trial of the action, the plaintiff or
3 counterclaimant notifies he shall have notified the lienholder
4 referred to in this act of the pendency of the such action or
5 counterclaim; whereupon such lienholder has shall have the
6 right, without leave of court, to intervene in the case and
7 prove the reasonable costs cost of such hospital care,
8 treatment, and maintenance. Any verdict that is may be
9 rendered in favor of the plaintiff or counterclaimant must
10 shall set forth the amount the jury finds to be due the
11 lienholder for the such hospital care, treatment, and
12 maintenance, and the name of the such lienholder. Any judgment
13 rendered in the case in favor of the plaintiff or
14 counterclaimant must shall also be in favor of the lienholder
15 in the amount set forth by the jury's verdict.
16 Section 8.6. This act is inapplicable to incidents The
17 provisions of this act shall not be applicable to accidents or
18 injuries within the purview of the Worker's Compensation Law
19 within this state the State of Florida.
20 Section 9.7. If any section, paragraph, sentence,
21 clause, phrase, or other part of this act should be declared
22 unconstitutional, or if this act should be declared
23 inapplicable in any case, such declaration shall not affect
24 the remainder of this act nor the applicability thereof in any
25 other case.
26 Section 10.8. This act shall take effect upon becoming
27 a law.
28 Section 2. This act shall take effect upon becoming a
29 law.
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