SESSION WATCH
Died SENATE · SESSION 2026

No. SB 1596

Medical Malpractice Liability Coverage
Send via email
SPONSOR
Rouson
FILED BY
Darryl Ervin Rouson — District 16, Democrat
EFFECTIVE
7/1/2026
DIED IN
Judiciary

Filed under Healthcare.

PROVIDED SUMMARY

Medical Malpractice Liability Coverage; Increasing the minimum amount of professional liability coverage certain physicians and osteopathic physicians, respectively, are required to maintain as a condition of licensure, etc.

Full bill text →

Plain English Summary

AI-GENERATED
Quadruples the malpractice coverage physicians need for hospital privileges.

Physicians and osteopathic physicians who want to keep hospital staff privileges must now carry professional liability coverage of at least $1 million per claim, up from $250,000, to prove they can pay for malpractice.

The required annual aggregate -- the total a policy must cover across all claims in a year -- rises from $750,000 to $3 million, quadrupling both thresholds at once.

Doctors who instead post an irrevocable letter of credit to prove financial responsibility face the same jump, from $250,000 to $1 million per claim and $750,000 to $3 million in total availability.

KEY PROVISIONS
§ 1 Quadruples per-claim malpractice coverage for physicians majors. 458.320

AIPhysicians who want to keep hospital staff privileges must carry professional liability coverage of at least $1 million per claim, up from the previous $250,000 minimum.

“professional liability coverage in an amount not less than $1 million per claim” bill text, line 19 →
§ 2 Quadruples the required annual aggregate coverage majors. 458.320

AIThe minimum annual aggregate a physician's malpractice policy must cover across all claims in a year rises from $750,000 to $3 million.

“with a minimum annual aggregate of not less than $3 million” bill text, line 21 →
§ 3 Raises the letter-of-credit alternative to the same levels majors. 458.320

AIA physician who instead posts an irrevocable letter of credit to prove financial responsibility must now provide at least $1 million per claim and $3 million in aggregate availability, up from $250,000 and $750,000.

“an unexpired irrevocable letter of credit, established pursuant to chapter 675, in an amount not less than $1 million per claim” bill text, line 33 →
§ 4 Applies the identical increase to osteopathic physicians majors. 459.0085

AIThe same jump -- $250,000 to $1 million per claim, $750,000 to $3 million aggregate, for both the insurance and letter-of-credit options -- applies to osteopathic physicians under a separate, mirroring statute.

“osteopathic physicians who have staff privileges must also establish financial responsibility by one of the following methods” bill text, line 62 →
TIMELINE
3/13/2026
Died in Judiciary
1/22/2026
Introduced
1/16/2026
Referred to Judiciary; Health Policy; Rules
1/9/2026
Filed
STATUTES IT CHANGES
s. 458.320
+10 / −8
s. 459.0085
+10 / −8