The Florida House Civil Justice Subcommittee voted to pass CS/HB119 on Wednesday afternoon, moving Florida lawmakers one step closer to radically altering the rights of Florida residents who are involved in auto and other motor vehicle accidents. The bill is aimed at overhauling Florida drivers’ Personal Injury Protection insurance, also known as “PIP” or “no-fault insurance.”
Under the current law, every Florida auto insurance policy must include a minimum of $10,000 in PIP medical insurance coverage per person per accident. The PIP benefits must be used to cover the driver’s (and passenger’s) medical bills first, regardless of whether or not the driver was at fault in the auto accident.
By contrast, the proposed House bill, which would go into effect on October 1, 2012 if passed, would impose an emergency care system, requiring drivers involved in auto accidents to receive emergency room treatment within 72 hours of the accident for their injuries. Only those (a) transported by ambulance; (b) treated in a hospital by an MD, DO, dentist, ARNP or PA; or (c) admitted to the hospital would be eligible for the $10,000 in benefits. The bill would not allow treatment by a chiropractor or licensed massage therapist.
Even supporters of this proposed legislation agree that such a drastic requirement would increase health care costs and further burden ER hospital staff who are already overwhelmed, not to mention it would also endanger the health of other ER patients by creating greater delays in treatment. Moreover, those who suffer traumatic brain injuries and other forms of injuries frequently sustained in auto accidents may not develop symptoms of such serious, potentially life-threatening injuries for months or even years. Further, the bill ignores the proven medical benefits of prompt chiropractic treatment in auto accident victims.
HB 119 would also impose numerous additional requirements for accident reports, provide coverage limits, establish a schedule of maximum charges, create a list of diagnostic tests deemed not to be medically necessary, and control attorneys’ fees. It would also allow expanded “examinations under oath” by insurance companies, which are already intimidating and intrusive to auto insurance policy holders. Florida Governor Rick Scott expressed his support for the bill at a news conference yesterday.
The bill is currently before the House Economic Affairs Committee. Meanwhile, the Florida Senate also has its own version of a PIP reform bill, SB1860, which does not cap attorneys’ fees but requires long-form accident reports and additional licensing of clinics to address fraud, along with calling for a statewide task force.
Florida lawmakers’ stated rationale for imposing such radical no-fault insurance reform is to curb insurance fraud throughout the state. It is unclear, however, how the measures proposed in the House and Senate bills would reduce fraudulent claims. What’s worse, unless the legislation considers the potentially disastrous consequences of radical PIP reform and blindly acquiesces to mounting pressures by insurance lobbyists, the new law will leave thousands of Florida drivers with serious injuries–many of whom already lack health insurance–in the dust.
The attorneys at PERENICH The Law Firm have over 70 years of combined experience in settling auto and other accident cases, together with the resources to take a case through trial and a jury verdict in the appropriate circumstances. We have tried dozens of cases throughout Florida, including Pinellas, Hillsborough, and Pasco Counties, and you can count on us to fight to resolve your case for what it’s worth.
