Capitol to Courthouse Florida Insurance Report: Tuesday, April 17
Apr 17, 2012
To go directly to the section of your choice, click on a hyperlink below. Other hyperlinks to meeting information, bills and news are noted in bold type.
Daily Florida Insurance-Related Events
9:00 a.m.–Florida Surplus Lines Service Office (“FSLSO”) Association meeting. 1441 Maclay Commerce Drive, Suite 200, Tallahassee, FL Tallahassee, Florida.
9:30 a.m.–Florida Office of Insurance Regulation (“OIR”) Rule Development Workshop. Pursuant to Section 627.410(6)(a), F.S., health insurers seeking to issue or renew health insurance policy forms in Florida must submit documentation (rating manuals, rating schedules, change in rating manual, change in rating schedule, etc) to the OIR demonstrating that the proposed policy or policy renewal’s premium rates are reasonable in relation to the benefits provided. Proposed Rule 69O-149.003, F.A.C. provides insurers with detailed rate filing procedures. To view the Workshop notice, click here.
Scientists gather for hurricane conference
Scientists from all over the world have gathered in Ponte Vedra Beach this week to talk about hurricanes.
Emergency operations officials encourage homeowners to update homes if needed
New homes built on the Suncoast are meant to withstand hurricane force winds, thanks to wind mitigation codes.
Fewer need to flee as Palm Beach County revamps its decades-old hurricane strategy
More than 100,000 people in Palm Beach County who previously would have been told to leave their homes in a hurricane now won’t, as part of the most dramatic overhaul in decades of the county’s evacuation plan.
Navy launches annual storm exercise
Naval Air Station Key West officials were hurriedly making arrangements Monday as Tropical Storm Quebert barrelled up the Caribbean Sea toward the Florida Keys in a mock hurricane drill.
Slipping through the loopholes of Personal Injury Protection reform
Florida’s new Personal Injury Protection auto-insurance reform bill hasn’t even been signed into law by Governor Rick Scott yet, but already there are disturbing signs some medical providers may be trying to exploit potential loopholes in it.
Florida insurers expect efforts to beat Personal Injury Protection reforms
Payments to chiropractors and massage therapists for treating injured motorists soared over the past decade – a 251 percent increase in massage claims alone from 2007 to 2010 – sending premiums for the no-fault auto insurance that paid for the treatment through the roof.
Blog: Merick Lewin, State House Candidate With Ties to 411-PAIN, Withdraws From Race
The Davie Republican with ties to the 1-800-411-PAIN Referral Service is no longer vying to represent western Broward in the state House.
$113 Million: Floridians benefit from Health Insurers’ Rebates
The 2010 federal health overhaul will lead to rebates for tens of thousands of Floridians who buy individual health-Insurance policies or get coverage through small businesses, according to an analysis by the Sun-Sentinel newspaper.
No severability clause? No problem. Counties say lawsuit will focus on county Medicaid billing only
KidCare champion Senator Nan Rich says she hopes the children’s health insurance expansion withstands legal challenge.
Number of children on Medicaid grows in Florida
The number of children covered through Medicaid, Florida Healthy Kids and other state health programs hit two million in March, according to totals released Monday by Florida KidCare.
John Hancock raises rates for long-term care insurance
John Hancock, one of Florida’s largest sellers of long-term care insurance, is raising rates on that coverage by an average of 35 percent for 40,000 policyholders.
HART goes self-insured to cut costs
During the past five years, HART paid two private health insurance companies $5.4 million more in premiums than those insurance companies paid in claims, a HART report shows.
Governor Rick Scott to sign state budget
Governor Rick Scott hits the road Tuesday to sign the new state budget at a top-rated elementary school in an upscale suburb of Jacksonville.
- Governor Scott keeps biggest turkey in state budget
- Governor Rick Scott faces Republican test on budget vetoes
Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi Wants More Floridians Included in BP Settlement
Attorney General Pam Bondi wants a federal judge to delay the recently announced BP settlement because she says it doesn’t give full compensation to Floridians.
Latest round of redistricting briefs sets stage for oral arguments
New state constitutional provisions intended to protect minority voting rights emerged as important terrain in the legal contest over the state’s revised Senate redistricting plan.
Blog: Florida Chief Financial Officer Jeff Atwater may jump into Senate race
With Florida Republicans unsatisfied about their choices in the U.S. Senate race and pessimistic about their prospects of unseating Democratic incumbent Senator Bill Nelson, state Chief Financial Officer Jeff Atwater is now saying he may enter the race, a potential game-changer.
Column: How business is steering Florida’s future
Business has set the agenda in Tallahassee for much of the past decade, pressing lawmakers to change the ground rules for growth, education, lawsuits and insurance.
John M. DeGrove, called Florida’s “father of growth management,” is dead at 87
John M. DeGrove, who was sometimes called Florida’s “father of growth management,” died Friday. He was 87.
Michigan Auto Law Debate Rekindled by Catastrophe Fund Fee
An increase in the amount Michigan drivers will pay into a fund for accident victims with brain damage, paralysis and other catastrophic injuries is renewing a call by some lawmakers for more transparency in how the rates are determined and broader insurance reforms.
Wisconsin Passes NRRA-Related Surplus-Lines Legislation
Wisconsin, which did not take action on implementing the federal Nonadmitted and Reinsurance Reform Act last year, has now passed such legislation, a National Association of Professional Surplus Lines Offices bulletin states.
Payment by insured in Tennessee would signify acceptance of policy change
If an amended bill passes the state House on Thursday, making an insurance payment after a policy has been tweaked by the insurer will be enough to set a revised policy in stone.
Washington Post Report: Nursing homes unprepared for natural disasters
Tornado, hurricane or flood, nursing homes are woefully unprepared to protect frail residents in a natural disaster, government investigators say.
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