The Florida House today passed SB 72, which will provide important COVID-19 liability protections for long-term care providers. After the vote, the House immediately certified the bill and sent it back to the Senate where the bill will formally be forwarded to Governor DeSantis for final action. LeadingAge Florida applauded its passage and issued the following statement attributable to President and CEO Steve Bahmer.
“We appreciate the legislature for their leadership and their support in passing legislation that extends reasonable liability protections to long-term care providers. We urge Governor DeSantis to act quickly and sign this bill into law when it is received.
It is hard to remember now how little was known about the virus a year ago. How many lifesaving decisions had to be made with little time and ever-changing information. There are now more than 1,500 pages of orders, directives and FAQs, which, in some cases, changed as many as six times in three weeks.
In spite of the unprecedented challenges our long-term care heroes fought courageously, under extraordinarily difficult circumstances, to protect Florida’s seniors from the coronavirus. Today, we applaud the legislature for protecting them.”
For more than 57 years, LeadingAge Florida has been the state’s leading advocate for high-quality senior living, aging services and care. We are the only statewide association representing the full continuum of care for seniors. The Association provides up-to-date regulatory information, a wide variety of educational opportunities, representation before the Legislature and government agencies, group purchasing services, and opportunities for networking with peers to help member communities best serve the needs of Florida’s senior population.
