No-Fault Insurance Reform Bill Scheduled for Tuesday in Senate

The Senate has placed a bill to reform the states low-cost personal injury protection auto insurance on the special-order calendar for Tuesday.

The House and Senate are advancing vastly different bills to meet Gov. Rick Scotts goal to reform the fraud that has become a major part of the cost of the personal injury protection insurance.

Meanwhile, senators and representatives have said this could be the last effort to reform a system that requires motorists to carry $10,000 worth of PIP coverage, with insurance companies required to pay out regardless of who caused the accident.

The Senate version, SB 1860, cleared the Senate Budget Committee on Wednesday. The House bill, HB 119, was approved by the House on Friday.

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.

HB 119, which has been backed by Scott, requires those injured in auto accidents to get treatment in an emergency room within 72 hours -- people could visit private physicians with caveats that the treatment occurs within 72 hours of the crash and the treatment costs under $1,500 -- and bans chiropractors and massage therapists from follow-up care coverage. It also caps attorneys' fees in both individual and class-action disputes.

SB 1860 would tighten procedures for licensing medical clinics and authorizing who can provide treatment, 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 or set a deadline for those involved in a crash to seek medical help.