SB 1354 – relating to Health Care
On Monday, April 28th, SB 1354, relating to Health Care, by Senator Denise Grimsley (R-Sebring) passed the Senate with amendments by a 33-3 vote. The bill now heads to the House for consideration.

The bill contains several onerous provisions which are not supported by AIF.  Those provisions would:

• Require health insurers to use a single standardized form for obtaining prior authorization for a medical procedure, beginning January 1, 2015;
• Deem a prior authorization request submitted for prescription drugs as approved unless an insurer responds within three business days;
• Allow health care providers to request an override of a health insurer’s step-therapy or fail-first protocol for medications and require an insurer to grant the override within 72 hours in certain situations; and
• Require managed care organizations participating in the Statewide Medicaid Managed Care Program to establish a broader prescribed drug formulary or preferred drug list.

The provisions added on the Senate floor today would cap the trauma act vitiation fee at $15,000 and establishes a Trauma System Plan Advisory Council to review the Trauma System Consultation Report issued by the American College of Surgeons Committee on Trauma.  The advisory council, based on the review would submit recommendations to the Legislature by February 1, 2015. 

An amendment was offered during the committee, but later withdrawn, which would have added last session’s plan advanced by the Senate which would have provided a mechanism to drawn down Medicaid dollars from the federal government to care for the low income Floridians who would not be eligible for Florida’s current Medicaid program but would have too much income to receive a subsidy to purchase coverage through the federal health care act.

AIF encourages legislators to have more awareness on this legislative proposal that would create more red tape and higher costs for Florida businesses.