The Leapfrog Group is asking a federal appeals court to overturn a ruling that barred the hospital-rating organization from using a disputed methodology to grade five South Florida hospitals.
In a brief filed Thursday with the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Leapfrog argues the case raises First Amendment issues because its A-to-F safety grades are “opinions” protected by the Constitution.
The case involves five Tenet Healthcare hospitals that did not participate in Leapfrog's 2024 voluntary survey. The nonprofit’s update methodology gave those hospitals the lowest possible scores for some measures when data was unavailable.
The hospitals, part of the Palm Beach Health Network, sued, alleging the grades misled the public about their safety.
U.S. District Judge Donald Middlebrooks, of the Southern District of Florida, agreed with Tenet, finding Leapfrog's methodology violated Florida's consumer-protection law. He ordered Leapfrog to remove the affected grades and stop using the disputed methodology for the five hospitals.
Leapfrog complied with Middlebrooks’ order. In May, its spring report did not assign grades to about 450 hospitals that did not participate. Eight were in Florida, including the five that filed suit: Good Samaritan Medical Center and St. Mary’s Medical Center in West Palm Beach; Delray Medical Center in Delray Beach; Palm Beach Gardens Medical Center; and West Boca Medical Center.
The judge rejected Leapfrog's request to reconsider that ruling in June.
In its latest appeal, Leapfrog argues the hospitals are essentially trying to use a consumer-protection law to silence criticism. It says the grades reflect Leapfrog's judgment about hospital safety, rather than “irrefutable, objective scientific fact.”
Leapfrog also argues that, even if the grades are treated as factual statements, Tenet failed to prove that Leapfrog acted with malice – “as though it had issued the imputed scores and grades in reckless disregard of known truth.”
Middlebrooks also put on hold the Palm Beach Health Network’s attempt to force Leapfrog to cover $10.5 million in legal fees – about $2 million for each of the five hospitals. The judge said the request could be refiled after Leapfrog exhausted all appeals.
Palm Beach Hospital Network has not yet filed a response to the appeal.
