A 2022 Florida Legislative Update

Tallahassee – State lawmakers returned to the capital this week for yet another special session, the third so far for this year. In just under three days Senators and Reps considered and voted out a series of comprehensive bills aimed at shoring-up Florida’s unstable property insurance market. Along largely party-line votes, both chambers gave their final approval to sweeping changes to new property insurance laws hoping to end spiraling premium increases; restore stability to a market where many insurance companies have gone out of business or left the state; while at the same time directing $1-billion in taxpayer money to a reinsurance plan.

In an effort to rein in excessive litigation costs supporters argued were also a large part of the problem, the bills also included provisions eliminating one-way attorneys’ fees while also limiting policy holders’ ability to assign their benefits to contractors. Fortunately, the elimination of one-way attorneys’ fees is limited to property insurance cases where, in the past, bills have been filed to include all first party insurance cases such as PIP cases.  The bills, together with measures offering hurricane disaster relief in the wake of the 2022 hurricane season, also created a new program offering frequent toll road drivers a 50% reduction in their toll charges. The bills now head to Governor DeSantis’ desk to be signed into law.

This was the second special session called this year to deal specifically with Florida’s property insurance crisis. State lawmakers now take a break for the holidays before returning in early January for inaugural festivities, followed by additional sets of committee meetings later in the month and into February in preparation for the Legislature’s annual 60-day lawmaking session scheduled to kick-off on March 7, 2023. 

Be sure to watch for further updates from your FCA Lobby Team on the ground in Tallahassee 24/7 as we continue to work to protect the profession’s interests in your capital.  The FCA will report on issues primarily related to the profession as we understand the necessity to avoid information-overload in a time when schedules are busy.

An FCA Member Election & ChiroPAC Update

Pollsters and pundits almost universally agreed: Last week’s mid-elections would most likely result in a “Red Wave” tsunami as Republicans captured control of just about everything in sight -- from the U.S. Congress, to record numbers of governorships and state legislatures and assemblies across America. But, as the results trickled in, a far different picture was painted.

Despite the predictions, and even as votes are still being counted in some places a week later, things haven’t turned out to be all that dismal for Democrats. Unless, of course, you happen to be one that calls Florida home.

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Last week, the FCA reported on Florida’s Freedom First budget which provided $600 million in funding to AHCA for reportedly increased reimbursements for the sole purpose of increasing the minimum wage for “employees” of Medicaid providers to at least $15.00 per hour. Medicaid Providers are required to complete and submit a Supplemental Wage Agreement.

If you are currently a Medicaid provider and wish to continue to be a Medicaid provider, you are required to complete a Minimum Wage Supplemental Wage Agreement, wherein in exchange for receiving what is supposed to be increased reimbursements, you agree to increase your employee’s wages to $15 per hour by January 1, 2023, else face civil action by an employee, an award of the back wages unlawfully withheld, the same amount of an award in liquidated damages, and payment of attorney’s fees and costs to the prevailing party.

On June 2, 2022, Governor Ron DeSantis signed the Freedom First budget for State Fiscal Year (SFY) 2022-2023. The Freedom First Budget provided over $600 million in funding to the Agency for Health Care Administration (Agency or AHCA) for the sole purpose of increasing the minimum wage for employees of Medicaid providers to at least $15.00 an hour.

To distribute the funds appropriated for the Medicaid provider minimum wage requirement, AHCA has been directed to increase Medicaid managed care reimbursement rates and certain Medicaid fee-for-service fee schedules. The Agency is also required to enter into a supplemental wage agreement with each impacted Medicaid Provider by October 1, 2022, to ensure compliance with the minimum wage requirements.

While Florida voters approved Amendment 2 to the Florida constitution on November 3, 2020, to gradually increase the state’s minimum wage to $15.00 per hour by the year 2026, the required minimum wage increase in Florida on September 30, 2022, is $11.00 per hour ($12.00 on 9/30/23; $13.00 per hour on 9/30/24, etc until $15.00 per hour on 9/30/26). Medicaid providers, however, must abide by the State’s Freedom First budget to increase employee wages to $15.00 per hour by January 1, 2023.

THE DEADLINE FOR THE SUPPLEMENTAL AGREEMENT IS OCTOBER 1: This is a reminder that the deadline to enter into the required Minimum Wage Supplemental Wage Agreement with the Agency is October 1, 2022.

Updated Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs): New posting for FAQs to address questions submitted. The updated FAQs can be found here.

Medicaid Minimum Wage Site: https://ahca.myflorida.com/Medicaid/Finance/finance/enh_wage/index.shtml#

QUESTIONS? FLMedicaidManagedCare@ahca.myflorida.com

COMPLAINTS OR ISSUES? ON LINE http://ahca.myflorida.com/Medicaid/complaints/ or CALL 1-877-254-1055

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Tallahassee – With the close of candidate qualifying on June 17th, candidates for federal, state and local offices are now off and running with their sights on primary election day in late August followed by the general election on November 8th. Since most will be running in newly-drawn districts resulting from a once-every-decade remapping following the decennial census, it’s already proving to be a spirited and frenetic election season. While Gov. DeSantis drew no primary challenge in his reelection bid, he’ll face a general election challenge from likely one of the two best-known Democrats vying for their party’s nomination: Florida Ag Commissioner Nikki Fried and former Governor, now a U.S. Congressman, Charlie Crist.

Meanwhile DeSantis has been busy charged with giving his approval – or disapproval – to the 285 bills passed by the Florida House and Senate during their annual 60-day session which wrapped-up on March 14th. Topping the list was Florida’s record $110-billion state budget which DeSantis finally approved on June 2nd -- but only after vetoing another record $3.1-billion in line items citing prudence in the face of a slowing economy and mounting inflation. As of this writing the Governor still has close to four dozen bills still waiting on his desk before he can finally close the books on this year’s lawmaking.

In addition to work on their spending plan for FY 2022-23, the single task lawmakers are required to tackle each year, other top priorities included state legislative and congressional reapportionment, illegal immigration, voting rights reform and a controversial Parental Rights in Education bill that led to a high-profile face-off between the Governor and Disney.

The Legislature’s final adjournment also saw the end to yet another attempt to repeal and replace Florida’s no-fault/personal injury protection insurance system replacing it with a mandatory bodily injury coverage requirement. Bills addressing the issue in both the House and Senate passed through each of their first committees of reference, only to remain stalled in their next committees, where they sat without further action until the Legislature adjourned, effectively killing the idea yet again.

It was another busy session in the health care arena addressing a variety of issues. Here’s a look at issues of interest to the profession that saw attention and action.

(From a Chiropractic Economics report of 05/25/2022) The Claims Journal – a respected insurance industry resource – published a May 18th webpost citing a recent study by the Workers Compensation Research Institute (WCRI) which found that “medical care costs less and claimants return to work more quickly when low back pain treatment is provided solely by chiropractors. Costs were also lower when chiropractors provided physical medicine services but other types of clinicians were in charge of evaluation and management, but the difference was not as dramatic.”

The Claims Journal went on to report:

Tallahassee – Failing to agree on measures during their regular session earlier this year to bring stability to Florida’s volatile property insurance market, state lawmakers were summoned to Tallahassee this week for a special session called by Gov. DeSantis to revisit the issue. With the start of the Sunshine State’s official 2022 hurricane season just days away, the Senate and House spent just short of three days debating and passing a series of measures they believe will help curb the problem as thousands of Floridians face losing their coverage, as others face the challenge of soaring rates.

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