Florida House Passes Medicaid Reform Measure

The Florida House passed a Medicaid reform bill -- HB 7107 -- on Thursday after a debate that extended more than two hours. The measure passed on an 80-38 vote that was very close to party lines.

The measure -- which ranked as one of the House leaderships top priorities for the 2011 session after similar measures stalled in 2010 -- sends most Medicaid recipients in the state into managed-care plans, including HMOs. Supporters of the bill and a companion piece pointed to the growing number of Medicaid recipients and warned that these numbers would only increase if nothing is done. The measures also include a liability provision -- limiting potential damages to $300,000, a reduction of $200,000 from the current system, when medical personnel are found liable for injuries to patients on Medicaid.

While the reform measures failed last year, the 2011 versions passed through a number of House committees during the first weeks of the session.

The House agreed on a special format for the debate, with floor managers guiding speakers in blocks during the debate which lasted for more than two hours. Rep. Rob Schenck, R-Spring Hill, the chairman of the Health and Human Services Committee and the sponsor of the measure, led the Republicans while Rep. Jim Waldman, D-Coconut Creek, served as floor manager for the Democrats.

Insisting that the reforms would help recipients, Schenck ended the debate by running through the numbers, arguing that the bills were necessary. All of us can see that not only is this not sustainable but this will cripple Floridas government, said Schenck. We simply cannot continue down this road.

The Senate version of the Medicaid reform bills moved through the Health Regulation Committee despite some opposition from Democrats and Sen. Mike Fasano, R-New Port Richey. If the measure passes the Senate, the chambers will be forced to conference on a number of key issues. While the House version breaks the state down into eight regions, the Senate version would set up 19 regions. The House version also has a longer time line for implementation.