Florida PlastiPac, Inc. - The political voice for Florida's Plastic Surgeons

UPDATE 7/21/08

The Florida Board of Dentistry today officially withdrew its proposed rules on dentists' use of Botox and dermal fillers. Score one for the good guys.

FYI - The Medicare Bill was vetoed by the President, and then later the Senate and House outvoted the veto.

UPDATE 6/25/08

The Medicare Relief Bill, HR 6331, was read for the first time in the U.S. Senate this morning, allowing it to be considered on the Senate Floor tomorrow.

We need to focus on Senator Martinez, who voted against a similar bill last week.

Please contact Senator Martinez at:

(202) 224-3041 (Washington Office)

(202) 228-5171 (Washington fax)

http://martinez.senate.gov

Senator Max Baucus has just filed a significant Medicare Reform package. As Chairman of the Committee of reference, Senator Baucus likely will get it to the floor quickly, and it is anticipated that this will be the vehicle that the Senate and House will be debating this month as we try to avoid the scheduled 10.6% cut in July. This bill would forestall that cut and allow for a 1.1% increase for 2009.

For further information, please see Senator Baucus' press release at http://finance.senate.gov/press/Bpress/2008press/prb060608.pdf

Chris

The Managed Care Bill just pased the House and is on the way to the Governor.

IT AIN'T OVER TILL IT'S OVER

Christopher L. Nuland, Esq.

FSPS Lobbyist

Despite having only two weeks left in the Legislative Session, members of both the House and Senate continue to scramble to push initiatives through committees that have vowed not to meet again.

For instance, the Drug Pedigree Bill, designed to correct "glitches" in how prescription drugs are distributed, as passed the House, but must still pass the Senate Judiciary and Health and Human Services Appropriations Committees. In a rare accommodation, both committees are scheduled to hear the bill next week. Likewise, the Controlled Substance Database Bill, bottled up in the House, has nevertheless continued in the Senate, where it also is scheduled for two hearings next week. In the House, the Policy and Budget Council will meet again Monday despite having previously indicated that no further bills would be discussed; as a result, several "dead" bills have new life.

Meanwhile, the Managed Care Reform Bill has progressed this week, passing the House Policy and Budget Council and being placed on the Senate's Special Order Calendar next Wednesday. We met with the FMA, Blue Cross, and Representative Galvano, and prospects for this bill now appear promising.

The next two weeks promise to be a circus, but we continue to keep you informed on events in each of the three rings.

Updated 4/7/08

With the House Committees having finished their work for year, the universe of bills "in play" shrunk considerably this past week. Bills limiting a physician's right to self-insure or allowing non-physicians to practice medicine appear dead, allowing us to focus on a few key remaining issues.

The Managed Care Reform Bill passed the Senate Health Policy Committee unanimously this week and goes before the House Health Council on Tuesday. The Senate Health Regulation also passed legislation to create a controlled substance website available to practitioners to monitor potential "doctor shopping."

Work on the "Pedigree Bill" also continues, as we strive to allow group practices to receive prescription drugs on behalf of its physician members while restricting access by non-physicians. We will also continue to push for Medicaid funding, although the initial budgets for Medicaid physician reimbursement appear promising.

The Board of Medicine Meeting also was successful, as the Surgical Care Committee agreed that a single recent incident, while confirming that continued vigilance is necessary, did not alone merit additional regulations at this time.

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