Healthcare Panel Approves Mandates for Hospitals & Insurers
TL/DR –
The House Select Committee on Health Innovation in Florida has unanimously passed four health care bills. HB 63 mandates Florida hospitals and ambulatory surgical centers to use smoke evacuation systems during surgeries that are likely to generate surgical smoke starting from January 2025. HB 241 necessitates commercial insurance policies and the state group health insurance program to cover annual skin cancer screenings without extras costs, while HB 659 introduces a standardized identification card for insured individuals and prohibits health plans from refusing to participate in the Statewide Provider and Health Plan Claim Dispute Resolution Program, and HB 877 requires hospitals with electronic health records to make data available to the Florida Health Information Exchange service.
Florida House Health Care Panel Passes Four Mandates Affecting Hospitals and Insurers
The Florida House Select Committee on Health Innovation unanimously passed HB 63, requiring hospitals and ambulatory surgical centers to go smoke-free by Jan. 1, 2025. The legislation necessitates the use of smoke evacuation systems during surgical procedures likely to generate smoke. This aims to prevent the smoke from reaching the eyes or respiratory tracts of people present.
According to a staff analysis, this regulation will cost roughly $10,000 per surgical suite annually. Eleven states have implemented similar legislation, with eight requiring smoke evacuation systems in hospitals and surgical centers.
On Tuesday, the Senate Health Policy Committee unanimously approved the Senate counterpart, SB 410. Florida hospitals and ASCs must comply with the 2021 National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) 101 Life Safety Code, which doesn’t mandate the use of smoke evacuation systems.
New Legislative Mandates for Health Insurance
The House Committee also approved HB 241, requiring commercial and state group health insurance policies to cover annual skin cancer screenings without additional cost-sharing. The financial impact of this mandate remains uncertain.
Most commercial health insurance plans offer essential health benefits (EHBs) as a core package of services, but the skin cancer screening mandate isn’t included in the EHBs adopted over ten years ago by Florida. Despite this, HB 241 demands coverage for skin cancer screening, with costs potentially reaching between $9.3 million to $16 million annually, as per the Office of Insurance Regulation.
However, a proposed rule by the Biden administration may prevent the state from absorbing these costs.
Additional Bills Passed
The committee also passed HB 659, creating standardized ID cards for insured individuals and providing quick access to the Department of Financial Services’ consumer services website. It also bans health plans from refusing to participate in the Statewide Provider and Health Plan Claim Dispute Resolution Program.
Another bill approved was HB 877, which necessitates hospitals with electronic health records to share admission, transfer, and discharge data with the Florida Health Information Exchange. It also requires them to make patient electronic health records available through a national health information exchange.
—
Read More Health & Wellness News ; US News