Senate Bill 164 (2026) — Civil liability for the wrongful death of an unborn child
SB 164
Florida Bills
Florida Senate - 2026 SB 164 By Senator Grall 29-00131-26 2026164__ Page 1 of 4 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. A bill to be entitled 1
An act relating to civil liability for the wrongful 2 death of an unborn child; reordering and amending s. 3 768.18, F.S.; revising the definition of the term 4 “survivors” to include the parents of an unborn child; 5 defining the term “unborn child”; amending s. 768.19, 6 F.S.; prohibiting a right of action against the mother 7 for the wrongful death of an unborn child or against a 8 medical provider for lawful medical care provided in 9 certain circumstances; amending s. 768.21, F.S.; 10 authorizing parents of an unborn child to recover 11 certain damages; prohibiting the recovery of certain 12 damages if the decedent is an unborn child; conforming 13 a cross-reference; providing an effective date. 14 15 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 16 17
Section
Section 768.18, Florida Statutes, is reordered 18 and amended to read: 19 768.18
Definitions.—As used in ss. 768.16-768.26: 20 (5)(1) “Survivors” means the decedent’s spouse, children, 21 parents, and, when partly or wholly dependent on the decedent 22 for support or services, any blood relatives and adoptive 23 brothers and sisters. It includes the child born out of wedlock 24 of a mother, but not the child born out of wedlock of the father 25 unless the father has recognized a responsibility for the 26 child’s support.
It also includes the parents of an unborn 27 child. 28 (1)(2) “Minor children” means children under 25 years of 29 Florida Senate - 2026 SB 164 29-00131-26 2026164__ Page 2 of 4 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. age, notwithstanding the age of majority. 30 (4)(3) “Support” includes contributions in kind as well as 31 money. 32 (3)(4) “Services” means tasks, usually of a household 33 nature, regularly performed by the decedent that will be a 34 necessary expense to the survivors of the decedent.
These 35 services may vary according to the identity of the decedent and 36 survivor and shall be determined under the particular facts of 37 each case. 38 (2)(5) “Net accumulations” means the part of the decedent’s 39 expected net business or salary income, including pension 40 benefits, that the decedent probably would have retained as 41 savings and left as part of her or his estate if the decedent 42 had lived her or his normal life expectancy. “Net business or 43 salary income” is the part of the decedent’s probable gross 44 income after taxes, excluding income from investments continuing 45 beyond death, that remains after deducting the decedent’s 46 personal expenses and support of survivors, excluding 47 contributions in kind. 48 (6) “Unborn child” means a member of the species Homo 49 sapiens, at any stage of development, who is carried in the 50 womb. 51
Section
Section 768.19, Florida Statutes, is amended to 52 read: 53 768.19 Right of action.— 54
(1) When the death of a person is caused by the wrongful 55 act, negligence, default, or breach of contract or warranty of 56 any person, including those occurring on navigable waters, and 57 the event would have entitled the person injured to maintain an 58 Florida Senate - 2026 SB 164 29-00131-26 2026164__ Page 3 of 4 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. action and recover damages if death had not ensued, the person 59 or watercraft that would have been liable in damages if death 60 had not ensued shall be liable for damages as specified in this 61 act notwithstanding the death of the person injured, although 62 death was caused under circumstances constituting a felony. 63
(2) Notwithstanding any other provision of this act, a 64 wrongful death action for the death of an unborn child may not 65 be brought against the mother of the unborn child or against a 66 medical provider for lawful medical care provided in compliance 67 with the applicable standard of care, including, but not limited 68 to, care related to assisted reproductive technologies as 69 defined in s. 742.13, provided with the consent of the mother. 70
Section 3. Subsection (4) and paragraph (
a) of subsection 71 (6) of
section 768.21, Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 72 768.21 Damages.—All potential beneficiaries of a recovery 73 for wrongful death, including the decedent’s estate, shall be 74 identified in the complaint, and their relationships to the 75 decedent shall be alleged. Damages may be awarded as follows: 76
(4) Each parent of a deceased minor child or an unborn 77 child may also recover for mental pain and suffering from the 78 date of injury. Each parent of an adult child may also recover 79 for mental pain and suffering if there are no other survivors. 80
(6) The decedent’s personal representative may recover for 81 the decedent’s estate the following: 82 (
a) Loss of earnings of the deceased from the date of 83 injury to the date of death, less lost support of survivors 84 excluding contributions in kind, with interest. Loss of the 85 prospective net accumulations of an estate, which might 86 reasonably have been expected but for the wrongful death, 87 Florida Senate - 2026 SB 164 29-00131-26 2026164__ Page 4 of 4 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. reduced to present money value, may also be recovered: 88 1. If the decedent’s survivors include a surviving spouse 89 or lineal descendants; or 90 2.
If the decedent is not a minor child or an unborn child 91 as those terms are defined in s. 768.18 s. 768.18(2), there are 92 no lost support and services recoverable under subsection (1), 93 and there is a surviving parent. 94 95 Evidence of remarriage of the decedent’s spouse is admissible. 96