Florida’s 60-day legislative session is set to kick off Tuesday, and the Florida Association of Health Plans is listing out what will be its top priorities for this year’s legislative session.
The group, which promotes health plans in the Sunshine State, will be putting its weight behind several bills pushing their way through the Florida Legislature.
One of the group’s top priorities is a bill sponsored by Rep. Carlos Trujillo, R-Miami, and Sen. Rene Garcia, R-Hialeah, which would ban healthcare providers from balance billing and would require them to seek payment from health insurance companies rather than individuals during emergency situations.
If the bill sounds familiar, it’s because it’s nearly exactly the same as language from the Affordable Care Act, or as many Republicans call it: Obamacare.
FAHP said it was behind the measure, saying the bill would “end the threat” of balance billing for policyholders. Patients are sometimes hit with surprise bills after emergency situations because healthcare providers will choose to bill them directly rather than
“In order to protect consumers from surprise medical bills, it is necessary to take steps to change the system of balance billing,” said FAHP President & CEO Audrey Brown. “[The legislation] would ensure Florida consumers are not subject to balance billing by prohibiting health care providers from billing a consumer for the balance of the retail charges above what the insurance company has already paid.”
Other bills which have gained traction with the Florida Association of Health Plans include a proposal from Sen. Nancy Detert, R-Venice, and Rep. Travis Cummings, R-Orange Park to “modernize Florida’s Insurance Code by repealing burdensome measures that are unnecessary and ultimately do nothing but increase the cost of health care to Floridians.”
This bill would repeal existing Florida requirements in three areas which the FAHP says are “no longer relevant”: certificates of creditable coverage, outline of coverage, and conversion and continuation of coverage.
“FAHP consistently supports legislative proposals that promote access to comprehensive, affordable, quality health care, and this session is no different, as we will be actively advocating in favor of policies that build upon that principle,” said Brown.
While the group said it supported some policies making their way through the legislature, it wasn't onboard with other proposals.
“While FAHP is supporting several legislative proposals this session, we are also concerned about legislation that would hinder access to affordable, quality health care,” she continued.
The FAHP said it would oppose legislation which would “turn back the clock” on healthcare successes, officially standing against a bill to eliminate pediatric dental services from the Statewide Medicaid Managed Care program. The FAHP also said it’s against legislation to change prior authorization for medical professionals.
“Health plans use prior authorization, step edit therapy and protocols to uphold the highest standards of safety and effectiveness for the consumer,” said Brown.
“Further, health plans already work directly with providers, through pharmaceutical and therapeutics committees, to create formularies to meet the needs of their members for the best value. Without the use of these methodologies, plans would not be able to effectively manage their own pharmacy costs and ensure patient safety, which would then increase the cost of health care delivery in the State of Florida.”
The regular legislative session begins Tuesday in Tallahassee.
