Senate Committee Backs Closing Loophole on Drug Repackaging

The Senate Banking and Insurance Committee gave first backing for a Florida Chamber of Commerce- and Florida Insurance Council-backed bill to cap how much medical offices could charge when dispensing medication prescribed by an on-site physician.

Sen. Alan Hays, R-Umatilla, who sponsored the bill, SB 688, has estimated the cap, which would put the cost of prescription medication on par with what a pharmacy charges, could save Florida small businesses that pay into the workers compensation system $62 million, through a 2.5 percent rate reduction.

Pharmaceutical costs have jumped more than 600 percent in workers' compensation claims when the drugs are dispensed, or repackaged, from medical offices.

Closing the repackaged drug loophole will immediately eliminate the cost-driver in rising workers compensation rates while also ensuring that workers receive important medication as well as medical care, Teye Reeves, Florida Chamber of Commerce policy director, stated in a release.

A cap was approved by legislators as part of a larger bill in 2010. But with opposition expressed by medical groups, including the Florida Medical Association and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, mostly on convenience grounds, former Gov. Charlie Crist utilized a line-item veto on the measure.

Rep. Matt Hudson, R-Naples, has filed a companion bill, HB 511, in the House.