Senate Committee on Health Regulation Amends, Passes Workers’ Compensation Drug Repackaging Bill (SB 668)
Feb 22, 2012
Senate Bill 668 relating to Workers’ Compensation Medical Services was heard by the Senate Committee on Health Regulation today, February 22, 2012. The bill would revise requirements for determining the amount of reimbursement for prescription medications of workers’ compensation claimants by providing that the reimbursement amount is the same for repackaged or relabeled drugs as for non-repackaged drugs.
The sponsor, Senator Alan Hays, presented SB 668 to the Committee and noted that its enactment is expected to result in a 2.5 percent decrease in workers’ compensation insurance rates.
Committee Chairman Rene Garcia offered an amendment to the bill that would limit the amount reimbursable for prescription medication to the average wholesale price, plus a $4.18 dispensing fee. It also would require dispensing physicians to give a $15 credit to carriers for each prescription that costs over $25, as well as prohibit a physician from having an ownership interest in a licensed pharmaceutical repackaging entity or setting an average wholesale price. Insurance carriers would be subject to an administrative fine of $250 per instance for denying or delaying payment of a valid prescription claim. Additionally, if the Florida Department of Financial Services determines that an insurance carrier has improperly denied or delayed claims payments 15 times, under the provisions of Senator Garcia’s amendment, the administrative penalty would increase to $1,000 per instance. An insurance carrier found to have improperly denied or delayed claims payments 100 times in one calendar year would have to show cause as to why its certificate of authority should not be revoked or suspended.
Representatives of the business community and insurers testified during today’s meeting that Senator Garcia’s amendment would result in an increase to workers’ compensation insurance rates. A representative of the National Council on Compensation Insurance said that the amendment was anticipated to result in a 1.5 percent increase in workers’ compensation insurance rates.
Senator Mike Fasano offered an amendment to the Garcia amendment that would require the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation (“OIR”) to conduct a retrospective review of any rate filing in the last 12 months that resulted in a rate increase in order to determine whether the information in the rate filing included cost information demonstrating that 2.5 percent of the overall rate increase was attributable to repackaged prescription drugs. If it is determined that such information was not included in the rate filing, the OIR would then be required to reduce workers’ compensation rates by 2.5 percent. Senator Fasano’s amendment to the Garcia amendment was adopted by the Committee.
The Committee then considered an amendment by Senator Don Gaetz to the Garcia amendment that would require the OIR to reduce workers’ compensation rates by 2.5 percent on July 1, 2012. The Committee adopted the amendment Senator Gaetz’s amendment to the Garcia amendment.
The Committee adopted the Garcia amendment as amended and passed the bill.
To view the complete packet from today’s Committee meeting, click here.
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