A change in the way Medicaid enrollees receive dental benefits is currently making its way through the Florida House of Representatives. House Bill 7047 would carve dental benefits back into the Statewide Medicaid Managed Care (SMMC) program rather than through its current stand-alone program. Proponents of the bill, such as Florida Association for Health Plans … Read more
Florida has one of the highest percentages of residents over age 65 in the nation, pushing the continuum of care for seniors to the forefront of health care discussions. Currently, much of Florida’s health care spending for seniors is through institutionalized care, according to a recently released report from Florida TaxWatch, an independent research institute. … Read more
Florida legislators will convene next week to review and approve Florida’s 2022-2023 budget. Governor Ron DeSantis released his budget recommendations last month, totaling over $99.7 billion. Health care-wise, the “Freedom First Budget” provides support for substance use disorder services and direct care providers, but leaves COVID-19 mitigation funding virtually off the table. DeSantis … Read more
Over one million Floridians have enrolled in Medicaid over the course of the pandemic. However, this large influx of beneficiaries may shift as the federal public health emergency (PHE) declaration — and the accompanying Medicaid disenrollment freeze — could end as early as mid to late January 2022. The latest enrollment numbers from … Read more
Three agencies — the Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA), the Florida Department of Health, and the Department of Children and Families — presented their legislative budget requests (LBR) for fiscal year (FY) 2022 to the House Health Care Appropriations Subcommittee for consideration on Monday. Recurring requests among the agencies included health care workforce support … Read more
The Florida House Health Care Appropriations Subcommittee kicked off its first interim meeting before the 2022 legislative session on Tuesday, reviewing budget requests from the Agency for Persons with Disabilities (APD), Department of Elder Affairs (DOEA), and the Florida Department of Veterans’ Affairs (FDVA). Agency for Persons with Disabilities Rose Salinas, APD deputy … Read more
The Florida Legislative Budget Commission adopted several amendments allocating funds for the Agency for Healthcare Administration (AHCA), the Department of Health, and other agencies on Friday. The Commission also reviewed a long-range financial outlook for Florida from fiscal years 2021-23, which Commission Chair Rep. Jay Trumbull (R-Panama City) described as “very positive,” despite the projected … Read more
Debates over COVID-19 vaccine mandates are intensifying in Florida nursing homes and other health care settings. Some employers, including several Medicaid plans, are using incentives such as gift cards to encourage vaccinations among members, in an attempt to reach the state goal of vaccinating 50% of beneficiaries age 50 and older, according to Health News … Read more
Florida leads the nation with the most health insurance enrollees — 487,342 — through the state marketplace during the 2021 Special Enrollment Period (SEP), which concluded Sunday, according to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). The SEP report estimates over 2.5 million Americans gained health coverage through HealthCare.gov and state marketplaces during the … Read more
Governor Ron DeSantis discussed concerns over the COVID-19 Delta variant, breakthrough cases, and vaccination rates with Florida hospital leaders Wednesday. Florida currently has the second-highest number of daily reported COVID cases in the nation, behind only Louisiana. Representatives from the Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA), Orlando Health, Jackson Health System, and others joined the … Read more