Florida Insurance Council - Covering Florida Since 1962
By: Katrina Callaway, FIC General Counsel The Senate finally voted on their retroactive denial of claims bill, SB 162, on March 3, 2018 when they were in an unusual Saturday session. They had postponed a vote on the bill for over a week. The bill passed with a vote of 37-0. Starting January 1,…
By: Katrina Callaway, FIC General Counsel On March 2, 2018, the Senate telehealth bill, SB 280, passed the full Senate, but the bill is in trouble in the House. The House telehealth bill, HB 793, has not been heard in its first committee and that committee is not scheduled to meet again this Session. Thus,…
By: Katrina Callaway, FIC General Counsel The House passed the pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) bill (HB 351) on March 1, 2018 by a vote of 115-0. The House bill is now in the Senate for consideration and approval. The Senate bill, SB 1494, passed its last committee, Appropriations, on March 2, 2018 with one amendment. …
By: Katrina Callaway, FIC General Counsel The House passed the pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) bill (HB 351) on March 1, 2018 by a vote of 115-0. The bill is a compromise between the health insurance industry, the pharmacy industry and the PBMs. The Senate bill, SB 1494, will be heard in its last…
By: Katrina Callaway, FIC General Counsel On March 1, 2018, the Senate telehealth bill, SB 280, was heard on the Senate floor on special order and rolled to third reading. A technical amendment was adopted to correct the title of the bill. The Senate will vote on the bill on March 2, 2018, the…
By: Katrina Callaway, FIC General Counsel The House pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) bill (HB 351) will be voted on by the full House on March 1, 2018. We expect the bill will pass. On February 28, 2018, the bill was heard on the House floor on special order and rolled to third reading. The…
By: Katrina Callaway, FIC General Counsel SB 80 defines and establishes parameters on direct primary care. The bill had been sitting in its last committee, Appropriations, since October 2017, but was finally heard and passed by that committee on February 27, 2018 without amendment. The bill will now be heard on the Senate floor. The…
By: Katrina Callaway, FIC General Counsel On February 21, 2018, when the Senate was set to vote on SB 162, the bill sponsor asked to postpone the bill. No explanation for the postponement was given. The Senate put the bill on the calendar again for a vote on February 27, 2018, but the bill…
By: Katrina Callaway, FIC General Counsel The Senate telehealth bill, SB 280, unanimously passed its last committee on February 21, 2018 without amendment. The bill will now be heard on the Senate floor when set by the Special Order Calendar Group. The House telehealth bill, HB 793, has not been heard in its first committee…
By: Katrina Callaway, FIC General Counsel The Senate mental health parity bill passed its second committee on February 21, 2018 with one amendment giving funding to the Office of Insurance Regulation (OIR) for implementation of the bill. The bill has one committee left. The House companion bill, HB 955, has not been heard in its…