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Florida Bill Would Allow Women Who Get Abortions to Sue Doctors a Decade Later

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Florida Mulls Abortion Waiting Period Bill
SOUTH FLORIDA - MAY 07: An examination room is seen at a women's reproductive health center that provides abortions on May 7, 2015 in a city in South Florida. The Florida State Legislature recently approved a bill mandating a 24-hour waiting period for women seeking abortions. The bill is now in the hands of Republican Florida Governor Rick Scott, who is expected to sign it into law angering pro-choice advocates who see it as another instance of legislatures trying to restrict a woman's right to legal abortion services. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)Joe Raedle—Getty Images
By Samantha Cooney

Florida lawmakers are pushing forward a proposal that would enable women who are injured or feel emotional distress after an abortion to sue their doctors for up to a decade after the procedure, the Miami Herald reports.

The bill, which was approved by a House subcommittee on Thursday, was sponsored by Republican Rep. Erin Grall. Grall said the legislation is focused on helping women whose doctors are negligent or don’t obtain their informed consent before performing the procedure. Florida law currently requires written informed consent of the patient, which includes telling the women about the probable gestational age of the fetus and the health risks associated with terminating a pregnancy.

The state’s current medical malpractice laws only allow patients to sue two years after discovering injury from a procedure. “Because of the stigma associated with the procedure in our society, sometimes women are not as willing to speak out, which would make it difficult for them to decide to do that within the two-year period,” Grall told the Herald. “It’s a timing issue.”

According to the Herald, abortion rights advocates say that the legislation would limit abortion access in the state because it would require doctors to pay for extra liability insurance to cover the extended window. Kimberly Diaz, a lobbyist for the Florida Alliance for Planned Parenthood affiliates, told the Herald that the organization supports a woman’s right to sue their doctors if they are injured during the procedure. But she believes that Florida’s current medical malpractice laws are adequate.

[The Miami Herald]

 

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Write to Samantha Cooney at samantha.cooney@time.com