The House Health Care Committee passed four bills that would collectively impose mandates on hospitals, ambulatory surgery centers, insurance companies, and managed care plans.
The House Select Committee on Health Innovation passed it unanimously. HB63This law requires Florida hospitals and ambulatory surgical centers to make surgical procedures smoke-free starting January 1, 2025. This law requires hospitals to implement and adopt policies that require the use of smoke extraction systems during surgical procedures that may occur. smoke. Smoke extraction systems must effectively capture, filter, and remove smoke where it originates before it comes into contact with the eyes or airways of people in the room.
a staff analysis The cost of this regulation is set at $10,000 per operating room per year.
According to the analysis, 11 states have adopted laws requiring the use of surgical smoke extraction systems in certain medical facilities. Of these 11 states, eight require the use of smoke extraction systems in hospitals and surgical centers, and three others require the use of smoke extraction systems in all facilities where surgical smoke is generated.
Hospitals and ASCs in Florida must comply with the 2021 National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) 101 Life Safety Code and are not required to use surgical smoke extraction systems. The 2021 Code will be enforceable until 2027, when the State Fire Marshal's Office adopts his 2024 version of the National Fire Protection Association 101 Life Safety Code.
The Senate Health Policy Committee unanimously approved the companion bill in the Senate on Tuesday. SB410.
The House Select Committee agreed. HB241this bill would require commercial insurance policies and state group health insurance programs to cover annual skin cancer screenings performed by dermatologists without deductibles, coinsurance, copays, or other cost sharing. is.
It is not clear how much this mandate would increase costs and, perhaps more importantly, who would bear those costs.
Most commercial health insurance plans (non-employer and small group employer plans) are required to offer a core package of health services known as Essential Health Benefits (EHB). The skin cancer mandate is not one of the 10 categories or benefits people are entitled to under the federal health care law commonly referred to as Obamacare.
It is also not listed in the EHB that Florida adopted more than a decade ago and has not been amended since then.
However, HB 241 would require coverage for skin cancer screenings, and there is a provision in the federal health care law that would place the financial burden of additional requirements entirely on states. Those costs can range from $9.3 million to $16 million annually, according to the Office of Insurance Regulation.
However, the Biden administration in November announced the proposed regulations This codifies the new additional benefits included in the state's EHB, thus eliminating the need for states to cover their costs.
The committee also approved HB659, It creates standardized identification requirements for insureds that identify whether a plan is subject to state regulation, and the Consumer Services website of the Division of Consumer Services of the Department of Financial Services. It provides the insured with quick access to information.
The bill also prohibits health plans from refusing to participate in the Statewide Health Care Provider and Health Plan Billing Dispute Resolution Program. The state has contracted with Maximus to administer the program and assist contracted and uncontracted health care providers and managed care organizations in resolving billing disputes.
The committee also approved HB877The amendments require hospitals with electronic medical records to make admission, transfer, and discharge data available to healthcare providers. Florida Health Information Exchange Services that support public health data registration and patient care coordination. It also requires hospitals to make patients' electronic health records available through an established national health information exchange.
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