HALIFAX HOSPITAL MEDICAL CENTER, A SPECIAL TAXING DISTRICT, APPELLANT,
v.
ROSEMARIE RYALS AND RICHARD RYALS, APPELLEES
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COBB, Judge.
Halifax Hospital Medical Center (Halifax) appeals an order of the trial court dismissing its claim against Richard Ryals for medical expenses incurred by his wife, Rosemarie Ryals. She guaranteed payment of the hospital charges, but he did not. The trial court granted his motion to dismiss, apparently on the basis that the common law “doctrine of necessaries” is no longer viable in Florida. If the wife is not liable for the necessary medical expenses of her husband, as was held in Shands Teaching Hospital and Clinics, Inc. v. Smith, 497 So. 2d 644 (Fla.1986), then, ar-guendo, the converse must be true in the name of equal protection: he cannot be liable for hers.
It would seem logical that either both spouses or neither (in the absence of express contract) should be liable for the other's medical necessaries. Cf. Webb v. Hillsborough County Hospital Authority, 521 So. 2d 199 (Fla.2d DCA 1988). Nevertheless, until such time as the Florida Legislature alters the common law rule, we are-bound by that rule: a husband is financially responsible for the necessary maintenance of his wife. See Shands, 497 So. 2d at 646; Phillips v. Sanchez, 35 Fla. 187, 17 So. 363 (1895).
REVERSED.
SHARP, C.J., and DANIEL, J., concur.
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Connor v. Sw. Fla. Reg'l Med. Ctr., Inc., 668 So. 2d 175 (Fla. 1995)…592 So. 2d 683 (Fla.1991); Heinemann v. John F. Kennedy Memorial Hospital, 585 So. 2d 1162 (Fla. 4th DCA 1991); Faulk v. Palm Beach Gardens Community Hospital, Inc., 589 So. 2d 1029 (Fla. 4th DCA 1991); and Halifax Hospital Medical Center v. Ryals, 526 So. 2d 1022 (Fla. 5th DCA 1988). We have jurisdiction. Art. V, § 3(b)(4), Fla. Const. Southwest Florida Regional Medical Center sued Kenneth Connor and his wife Barbara Connor in 1993 for payment of medical services the hospital had rendered to Kenneth. The tr…
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Waite v. Leesburg Reg'l Med. Ctr., Inc., 582 So. 2d 789 (Fla. 5th DCA 1991)…wife Valerie Waite based on the common law doctrine of necessaries as stated by the Supreme Court of Florida in Shands Teaching Hospital v. Smith, 497 So. 2d 644 [*790] (Fla.1986) and this court’s opinion in Halifax Hospital Medical Center v. Ryals, 526 So. 2d 1022 (Fla. 5th DCA 1988). Appellant argues this court should declare the doctrine of necessaries unconstitutional because it violates equal protection guarantees of the federal and state constitutions. However, this court considered and rejected such eq…
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Sw. Fla. Reg'l Med. Ctr., Inc. v. Connor, 643 So. 2d 681 (Fla. 2d DCA 1994)…nc., 589 So. 2d 1029 (Fla. 4th DCA 1991), and Heinemann v. John F. Kennedy Memorial Hospital, 585 So. 2d 1162 (Fla. 4th DCA 1991). Neither opinion discussed or cited Webb. The Fifth District did cite Webb in Halifax Hospital Medical Center v. Ryals, 526 So. 2d 1022 (Fla. 5th DCA 1988), after stating that it would seem logical that either both spouses or neither should be liable for the necessaries of the other. However, it disagreed with the trial court’s ruling that the common law doctrine was no longer viabl…1 / 2
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Shands Teaching Hosp. & Clinics, Inc. v. Smith, 497 So. 2d 644 (Fla. 1986)
- Phillips v. Sanchez, 35 Fla. 187 (Fla. 1895)
- Carrigan v. McNEILL, 521 So. 2d 199 (Fla. 5th DCA 1988)