Service providers' liability, cocaine, arbitration, chain of custody, public employee, policy and procedure, evidence, due process.

A Dade County corrections officer appeals a lower court's ruling in her suit against the medical center that allegedly mishandled her sample in a drug test. Tongala Lynn filed suit against Mt. Sinai Medical Center, claiming staff there mishandled a urine sample she provided as part of a bi-annual medical exam required by the county. Medical center staff reported to Lynn's supervisors that her sample tested positive for cocaine. The county terminated Lynn's employment. However, she was later re-instated when an arbitrator ruled that the sample that tested positive for cocaine belonged to another county employee. Lynn subsequently filed a negligence suit against Mt. Sinai. The medical center argued that Lynn's complaint concerned an issue of medical malpractice. Medical center officials noted that Lynn's complaint was filed after the statute of limitations set forth in the state's Medical Malpractice Act had expired.

A district court dismissed Lynn's suit, ruling that her complaint was filed after the statute of limitations on medical malpractice violations had expired. Lynn now appeals.

Lynn wins. The Florida Court of Appeals, Third District, reversed the ruling of the lower jurisdiction. The court ruled that Mt. Sinai simply collected Lynn's urine sample and did not provide a medical service. Therefore, the court ruled, the state's Medical Malpractice Act did not provide the hospital with a defense to Lynn's complaint.