There are now only two weeks left in the 2017 Session, and lawyers and lobbyists are preparing for a frenetic stretch run. The House and Senate have significantly different budgetary priorities (e.g., the Senate wanting all state workers to receive a raise, while the House only provides raises for first responders) and significantly different approaches to health care. For instance, the House Health Services Committee advanced HB 7011 over our strenuous objections on Wednesday. This bill would...
Legislative
Report from the Medicare Carrier Advisory Committee
INTRODUCTION: As a representative for the Florida Society of Plastic Surgeons all of whom are certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery, I attended the most recent Medicare Carrier Advisory Committee (CAC) meeting. This committee is composed of 31 members who are representatives of their corresponding organizations. These organizations include MD/ DO based societies of Anesthesiologists, Dermatology, Internal Medicine, etc. as well as representatives from the Florida Hospital...
The 2017 Legislative Session Has Passed Its Midpoint
Dear Fellow FSPS Members: April 9, 2017 Legislative Update Christopher L. Nuland, Esq. Happy Passover and Easter. The 2017 Legislative Session has passed its midpoint, and with very little activity planned this coming week due to the Passover and Easter holidays, only three full weeks of full legislative activity remain. That being said, this past week was an eventful one for Medicine both at the Legislature and in a marathon Board of Medicine Meeting in Ft. Lauderdale. In Tallahassee, the...
Join The Florida Society of Plastic Surgeons to Take Action to Protect Patients
The FSPS and the ACS both strongly oppose HB 1037, and we need your support in letting your Representative know how your feel about letting an optometrist perform surgery with scalpel or laser. We need your help TODAY! Legislation has been filed that would allow optometrists, non-physicians, to independently perform laser and scalpel surgery without ever going to medical school or a surgical residency (House Bill 1037/Senate Bill 1168). This legislation puts patients in harm's way and lowers...
February 24, 2017 Legislative Update
February 24, 2017 Christopher L. Nuland, JD The calendar may only say February, but legislators and lobbyists made this past week the most eventful and challenging “Committee Week” in recent years. Officially, the House and Senate Committees were busy. On Tuesday, the Senate Banking and Insurance Committee advanced bills to eliminate most retroactive denials (SB 102) and to make HMOs liable for medical malpractice when they make medical decisions (SB262). At the exact same time, the Senate...
Advocacy Matters
Dear Fellow FSPS Members: This past week was a momentous one for Florida Plastic Surgery, both in the courts and in the legislature. FSPS Opposes Unsupervised Nurses Injecting Fillers The FSPS this week filed a Motion to Intervene in a Board of Nursing Declaratory Statement. The FSPS position is that Florida law does not support a registered nurse injecting facial fillers without the direct supervision and involvement of a supervising physician. Florida House Moves Major Legislation While the...
Legislative Update
By Chris Nuland, FSPS Counsel The 2017 Legislative Season is in full swing, with both the House and Senate completing the second week of Committee hearings this week. While few bills were actually acted upon, battle lines have begun to form on numerous issues of interest to physicians. For instance, we have already received commitments from legislators to file our legislation to better regulate medical spas, and bills have already been filed that would prohibit insurers from removing drugs...