Capitol to Courthouse Florida Insurance Report: Wednesday, August 8
Aug 8, 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 Department of Revenue (“DOR”) Rule Development Workshop. Proposed amendments to Rule 12B-8.003, “Tax Statement; Overpayments,” would adopt, by reference, changes to forms used by the DOR in the administration of the insurance premium taxes, fees and surcharges. To view the hearing notice, click here.
10:00 a.m.–Florida Division of Workers’ Compensation (“DWC”) Proposed Rule Hearing. Proposed amendments to Rule 69L-6.019, “Policies and Endorsements Covering Employees Engaged in Work in Florida,” would allow out-of-state employers with construction projects in Florida up to two business days from the commencement of an investigation to establish that they have been issued a properly endorsed Florida workers’ compensation policy. To view the hearing notice, click here.
2:00 p.m.–DWC Proposed Rule Hearing. Proposed amendments to Rule 69L-7.501, “Florida Workers’ Compensation Reimbursement Manual for Hospitals (Manual),” would adopt the 2012 Edition of the Manual, which incorporates a fee schedule reimbursement methodology for certain hospital services based on Current Procedural Terminology® (CPT) line level charge data obtained from defined geographic areas in Florida. It also establishes criteria to evaluate 18 months of hospital outpatient data. To view the hearing notice, click here.
Allstate companies ask for homeowners coverage rate hike
Castle Key Indemnity Co. and Castle Key Insurance Co. presented proposals to state regulators Tuesday for statewide average rate increases of 21.9 percent and 32.4 percent, respectively.
Group seeks financial help for windstorm study
Local city councils and commissions up and down the Keys should expect a visit from representatives of the nonprofit Fair Insurance Rates in Monroe in the near future.
Letter to the Editor: Citizens inspectors sometimes overlook storm-rated markings
Thank you for your excellent article on Citizens Property Insurance (“Citizens inspections: A storm of controversy”). I had a recent inspection, which found that my storm shutters could not be identified as Miami-Dade storm-rated because there were no identifiable stamps or markings on the shutters. My premium is due for a $350 increase, because in part of this finding.
Demotech: Mitigating the Impact of Catastrophic Storms on the State of Florida
After Hurricane Andrew made landfall in 1992, the State of Florida experienced eleven insurer insolvencies. Although none of these carriers had been reviewed or rated by Demotech, Inc., the majority of these carriers were reviewed and rated by other rating services.
-
To view the full paper, click here.
The Florida Legislature has created the state’s Depopulation Program to reduce the number of property owners who have insurance coverage through Citizens by encouraging new or existing private insurance companies to come into the market. Join us to hear from some of these “Take Out” companies on how the process works, what your options are, what questions you should be asking of your agent and any other concerns you may have regarding your property insurance coverage.
Florida CFO Atwater to auto insurers: Quit whining
CFO Jeff Atwater on Tuesday told auto insurers resistant to rate reductions to “quit whining.” Some insurers urged caution despite a draft report showing a new law aimed at reducing personal injury protection fraud would bring 12 to 20 percent savings to policyholders.
Florida Probes Bank-Insurer Ties in Force-Placed Market
Announcement of another state review comes days before NAIC’s hearing on force-placed insurance slated for Thursday
Florida regulators are investigating the force-placed insurance industry, the state’s insurance commissioner says.
13 notices of lawsuits filed in I-75 wildfire crashes
The state of Florida is facing the possibility of more than a dozen lawsuits over a series of deadly traffic crashes on Interstate 75 in January.
Pam Bondi’s Office Investigating Revelations of Needless Cardiac Surgery at HCA Hospitals
The Florida attorney general’s office is investigating allegations that as many as half of the cardiac operations at some of Florida’s major hospitals are being performed needlessly.
Medicaid plan to challenge state rules on long-term care
Florida’s effort to steer elderly Medicaid patients into managed care is running into its first significant hurdle.
Panel finishes its work on new regulations for assisted living facilities
The panel consisting of bureaucrats and industry representatives met six times as part of a negotiated rulemaking process.
Trayvon Martin’s Parents Seek Help from Florida Victims’ Fund
Trayvon Martin’s mother has asked for an undisclosed amount of money from a state fund set up to help crime victims with things like funeral expenses and counseling, according to documents obtained by The Associated Press.
Judge voids Florida limit on minors’ campaign giving
A two-decade-old Florida law limiting the contributions minors may make to state and local political campaigns is an unconstitutional infringement on free speech rights, a federal judge ruled Tuesday.
Primary Profile: District 22 shapes up as proxy fight for future Florida Senate leadership
House members Jeff Brandes and Jim Frishe have received support from ECOs financed by CCEs controlled by Senate heavyweights as they battle for the Senate seat in the Tampa Bay area.
Florida House District 34: Jimmie Smith and Nancy Argenziano Await Democrat Primary Winner
As he seeks a second term in the Florida House, Rep. Jimmie Smith, R-Lecanto, gets to wait while two Democrats battle in the primary to see who will take him on.
Today is deadline for vote-by-mail ballot requests
Today is the deadline to request a Vote By Mail ballot for the August 14 Primary Election.
Governor Rick Scott: GOP Convention Speech to Focus on Florida as Model for the Country
A day after it was announced that Gov. Rick Scott would be among the speakers at the Republican National Convention in Tampa, his speech is a long way from being written.
Gambling battle helping State Representative Holder fundraise
Being the chairman of a key subcommittee in the state Legislature with jurisdiction over gambling is paying off for State Representative Doug Holder, R-Osprey. Holder, who is affiliated with a political fundraising committee called Citizens for Common Sense, has raised almost half of his money
Louisiana’s Assumption residents demand answers about sinkhole
Residents of a small, rural Louisiana community angrily demanded answers from their public officials Tuesday night on the cause of a large sinkhole that liquefied hundreds of feet of swamp into sludge.
Click here to follow Colodny Fass& Webb on Twitter (@CFTLAWcom)
To unsubscribe from this newsletter, please send an email to Brooke Ellis at bellis@cftlaw.com.