The House and Senate are advancing separate reform packages for the states low-cost personal injury protection auto insurance that could be the last effort to reform the broken system.
The sponsor of the Senate bill says if the final reform package doesnt hold, the state may have to end the no-fault program that requires motorists to carry $10,000 worth of coverage, with insurance companies required to pay out regardless of who caused the accident.
If, after making these efforts, if the system is not working, we may want to take a look at eliminating it, said Sen. Joe Negron, R-Stuart, the sponsor of SB 1860. This is the last, best chance to make PIP be a valuable insurance coverage for our constituents.
The Senate Budget Committee backed Negrons bill Wednesday 15-5, with some members who supported the effort saying they wished the full Senate was considering the House version of the bill, which has received more support from Gov. Rick Scott than the Senate's.
Both bills aim to reform the no-fault insurance program, which has seen premiums collectively grow by $1 billion in the past several years, which reformers say is due to fraud.
In my opinion we have a poorly constructed piece of legislation, said Sen. Garrett Richter, R-Naples. This whole thing has been like changing the tire on a moving car and we just dont have the lug nuts lined up right.
Richter noted that while he couldnt predict the outcome in the Legislature, the governor has been right to make insurance reform a priority this year.
The governor has rightfully put a significant amount of energy to push meaningful reform forward; were just going to have to regroup over the next eight days left and see how it will go from there, Richter said.
Negrons bill tightens procedures for licensing medical clinics, requires long-form incident reports as a way to root out staged accidents, updates the bill-payment system and gives hospitals priority standing in personal injury protection claims. It does not cap attorneys' fees.
The House bill, HB 119, requires those injured in auto accidents to get treatment in an emergency room within 72 hours and bans chiropractors and massage therapists from follow-up care coverage. It also caps attorneys' fees in both individual and class-action disputes.
HB 119 was tweaked before being passed by the House Economic Affairs Committee on Friday morning to allow patients to visit private physicians with caveats that the treatment occurs within 72 hours of the crash and the treatment costs under $1,500.
The Florida Consumer Action Network, the Florida Medical Association, Florida Justice Association, Florida Chiropractic Association, Florida Osteopathic Medical Association, Florida Public Interest Research Group, and Florida CHAIN, have backed the Senate bill, which would also impose a $5,000 fine and jail time in fraud cases and would target the licenses of medical professionals involved in them.
Reach Jim Turner at jturner@sunshinestatenews.com or at (772) 215-9889.
