Senate Bill 1508c2

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    Florida Senate - 2000                    CS for CS for SB 1508

    By the Committees on Health, Aging and Long-Term Care; Banking
    and Insurance; and Senator Brown-Waite




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  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to managed care organizations;

  3         amending s. 641.315, F.S.; deleting provisions

  4         relating to provider billings; revising

  5         provisions relating to provider contracts;

  6         providing for certain disclosures and requiring

  7         notice; requiring procedures for requesting and

  8         granting authorization for utilization of

  9         services; creating s. 641.3154, F.S.; providing

10         for health maintenance organization liability

11         for payment for services rendered to

12         subscribers; prohibiting provider billing of

13         subscribers under specified circumstances;

14         amending s. 641.3155, F.S.; defining the term

15         "clean claim"; specifying the basis for

16         determining when a claim is to be considered

17         clean or not clean; requiring the Department of

18         Insurance to adopt rules to establish a claim

19         form; providing requirements; providing the

20         Department of Insurance with discretionary

21         rulemaking authority for coding standards;

22         providing requirements; providing for payment

23         of clean claims; providing requirements for

24         denying or contesting a portion of a claim;

25         providing for interest accrual and payment of

26         interest; providing an uncontestable obligation

27         to pay a claim; requiring a health maintenance

28         organization to make a claim for overpayment;

29         prohibiting an organization from reducing

30         payment for other services; providing

31         exceptions; requiring a provider to pay a claim

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  1         for overpayment within a specified timeframe;

  2         providing a procedure and timeframes for a

  3         provider to notify a health maintenance

  4         organization that it is denying or contesting a

  5         claim for overpayment; specifying when a

  6         provider payment of a claim for overpayment is

  7         to be considered made; providing for assessment

  8         of simple interest against overdue payment of a

  9         claim; specifying when interest on overdue

10         payments of claims for overpayment begins to

11         accrue; specifying a timeframe for a provider

12         to deny or contest a claim for overpayment;

13         providing an uncontestable obligation to pay a

14         claim; specifying when a provider claim that is

15         electronically transmitted or mailed is

16         considered received; specifying when a health

17         maintenance organization claim for overpayment

18         is considered received; mandating

19         acknowledgment of receipts for electronically

20         submitted provider claims; prescribing a

21         timeframe for a health maintenance organization

22         to retroactively deny a claim for services

23         provided to an ineligible subscriber; creating

24         s. 641.3156, F.S.; providing for treatment

25         authorization and payment of claims by a health

26         maintenance organization; clarifying that

27         treatment authorization and payment of a claim

28         for emergency services is subject to another

29         provision of law; providing a cross-reference;

30         amending s. 641.495, F.S.; revising provisions

31         relating to treatment-authorization

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  1         capabilities; requiring agreement to pending

  2         authorizations and tracking numbers as a

  3         precondition to such an authorization; creating

  4         s. 408.7057, F.S.; providing for the

  5         establishment of a statewide provider and

  6         managed-care-organization claim-dispute

  7         resolution program; providing rulemaking

  8         authority to the Agency for Health Care

  9         Administration; amending s. 395.1065, F.S.,

10         relating to criminal and administrative

11         penalties for health care providers;

12         authorizing administrative sanctions against a

13         hospital's license for improper subscriber

14         billing and violations of requirements relating

15         to claims payment; amending s. 817.50, F.S.,

16         relating to fraud against hospitals; expanding

17         applicability to health care providers;

18         providing a cross-reference; providing

19         applicability; providing an effective date.

20

21  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

22

23         Section 1.  Section 641.315, Florida Statutes, is

24  amended to read:

25         641.315  Provider contracts.--

26         (1)  Whenever a contract exists between a health

27  maintenance organization and a provider and the organization

28  fails to meet its obligations to pay fees for services already

29  rendered to a subscriber, the health maintenance organization

30  shall be liable for such fee or fees rather than the

31  subscriber; and the contract shall so state.

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  1         (2)  No subscriber of an HMO shall be liable to any

  2  provider of health care services for any services covered by

  3  the HMO.

  4         (3)  No provider of services or any representative of

  5  such provider shall collect or attempt to collect from an HMO

  6  subscriber any money for services covered by an HMO and no

  7  provider or representative of such provider may maintain any

  8  action at law against a subscriber of an HMO to collect money

  9  owed to such provider by an HMO.

10         (1)(4)  Each Every contract between a health

11  maintenance organization an HMO and a provider of health care

12  services must shall be in writing and shall contain a

13  provision that the subscriber is shall not be liable to the

14  provider for any services for which the health maintenance

15  organization is liable, as specified in s. 641.3154 covered by

16  the subscriber's contract with the HMO.

17         (5)  The provisions of this section shall not be

18  construed to apply to the amount of any deductible or

19  copayment which is not covered by the contract of the HMO.

20         (2)(6)(a)  For all provider contracts executed after

21  October 1, 1991, and within 180 days after October 1, 1991,

22  for contracts in existence as of October 1, 1991:

23         1.  The contracts must require provide that the

24  provider to give shall provide 60 days' advance written notice

25  to the health maintenance organization and the department

26  before canceling the contract with the health maintenance

27  organization for any reason; and

28         2.  The contract must also provide that nonpayment for

29  goods or services rendered by the provider to the health

30  maintenance organization is shall not be a valid reason for

31  avoiding the 60-day advance notice of cancellation.

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  1         (b)  For all provider contracts executed after October

  2  1, 1996, and within 180 days after October 1, 1996, for

  3  contracts in existence as of October 1, 1996, the contracts

  4  must provide that the health maintenance organization will

  5  provide 60 days' advance written notice to the provider and

  6  the department before canceling, without cause, the contract

  7  with the provider, except in a case in which a patient's

  8  health is subject to imminent danger or a physician's ability

  9  to practice medicine is effectively impaired by an action by

10  the Board of Medicine or other governmental agency.

11         (3)(7)  Upon receipt by the health maintenance

12  organization of a 60-day cancellation notice, the health

13  maintenance organization may, if requested by the provider,

14  terminate the contract in less than 60 days if the health

15  maintenance organization is not financially impaired or

16  insolvent.

17         (4)  Whenever a contract exists between a health

18  maintenance organization and a provider, the health

19  maintenance organization shall disclose to the provider:

20         (a)  The mailing address or electronic address where

21  claims should be sent for processing;

22         (b)  The telephone number that a provider may call to

23  have questions and concerns regarding claims addressed; and

24         (c)  The address of any separate claims-processing

25  centers for specific types of services.

26

27  A health maintenance organization shall provide to its

28  contracted providers in no less than 30 calendar days, prior

29  written notice of any changes in the information required in

30  this subsection.

31

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  1         (5)(8)  A contract between a health maintenance

  2  organization and a provider of health care services may shall

  3  not restrict contain any provision restricting the provider's

  4  ability to communicate information to the provider's patient

  5  regarding medical care or treatment options for the patient

  6  when the provider deems knowledge of such information by the

  7  patient to be in the best interest of the health of the

  8  patient.

  9         (6)(9)  A contract between a health maintenance

10  organization and a provider of health care services may not

11  contain any provision that in any way prohibits or restricts:

12         (a)  The health care provider from entering into a

13  commercial contract with any other health maintenance

14  organization; or

15         (b)  The health maintenance organization from entering

16  into a commercial contract with any other health care

17  provider.

18         (7)(10)  A health maintenance organization or health

19  care provider may not terminate a contract with a health care

20  provider or health maintenance organization unless the party

21  terminating the contract provides the terminated party with a

22  written reason for the contract termination, which may include

23  termination for business reasons of the terminating party. The

24  reason provided in the notice required by in this section or

25  any other information relating to the reason for termination

26  does not create any new administrative or civil action and may

27  not be used as substantive evidence in any such action, but

28  may be used for impeachment purposes. As used in this

29  subsection, the term "health care provider" means a physician

30  licensed under chapter 458, chapter 459, chapter 460, or

31  chapter 461, or a dentist licensed under chapter 466.

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  1         (8)  A contract between a health maintenance

  2  organization and a provider must establish procedures for a

  3  provider to request and the health maintenance organization to

  4  grant authorization for utilization of health care services.

  5  The health maintenance organization must give written notice

  6  to the provider prior to any changes in these procedures.

  7         Section 2.  Section 641.3154, Florida Statutes, is

  8  created to read:

  9         641.3154  Organization liability; provider billing

10  prohibited.--

11         (1)  If a health maintenance organization is liable for

12  services rendered to a subscriber by a provider, whether a

13  contract exists between the organization and the provider or

14  not, the organization is liable for payment of fees to the

15  provider, and the subscriber is not liable for payment of fees

16  to the provider.

17         (2)  For purposes of this section, a health maintenance

18  organization is liable for services rendered to a subscriber

19  by a provider if the subscriber contract or applicable law

20  establishes such liability.

21         (3)  The liability of an organization for payment of

22  fees for services is not affected by any contract the

23  organization has with a third party for the functions of

24  authorizing, processing, or paying claims.

25         (4)  A provider, whether under contract with the health

26  maintenance organization or not, or any representative of such

27  provider, may not collect or attempt to collect money from,

28  maintain any action at law against, or report to a credit

29  agency a subscriber of an organization for payment of services

30  for which the organization is liable, if the provider in good

31  faith knows or should know that the organization is liable.

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  1  This prohibition applies during the pendency of any claim for

  2  payment made by the provider to the organization for payment

  3  of the services and any legal proceedings or

  4  dispute-resolution process to determine whether the

  5  organization is liable for the services if the provider is

  6  informed that such proceedings are taking place. It shall be

  7  conclusively presumed that a physician does not know and

  8  should not know that an organization is liable unless:

  9         (a)  The provider is informed by the organization that

10  it accepts liability;

11         (b)  A court of competent jurisdiction determines that

12  the organization is liable; or

13         (c)  The department or agency makes a final

14  determination that the organization is required to pay for

15  such services subsequent to a recommendation made by the

16  Statewide Provider and Subscriber Assistance Panel pursuant to

17  s. 408.7056.

18         (5)  An organization and the department shall report

19  any suspected violation of this section by a health care

20  practitioner to the Department of Health and by a facility to

21  the agency which shall take such actions as authorized by law.

22         Section 3.  Section 641.3155, Florida Statutes, is

23  amended to read:

24         641.3155  Provider contracts; Payment of claims.--

25         (1)(a)  As used in this section, the term "clean claim"

26  means a claim that has no defect or impropriety, including

27  lack of required substantiating documentation for

28  noncontracting providers and suppliers, or particular

29  circumstances requiring special treatment which prevent timely

30  payment from being made on the claim. A claim may not be

31  considered not clean solely because a health maintenance

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  1  organization refers the claim to a medical specialist within

  2  the health maintenance organization for examination. If

  3  additional substantiating documentation, such as the medical

  4  record or encounter data, is required from a source outside

  5  the health maintenance organization, the claim is considered

  6  not clean.

  7         (b)  The department shall adopt rules to establish

  8  claim forms consistent with federal claim-filing standards for

  9  health maintenance organizations required by the federal

10  Health Care Financing Administration. The department may adopt

11  rules relating to coding standards consistent with Medicare

12  coding standards adopted by the federal Health Care Financing

13  Administration.

14         (2)(1)(a)  A health maintenance organization shall pay

15  any clean claim or any portion of a clean claim made by a

16  contract provider for services or goods provided under a

17  contract with the health maintenance organization or a clean

18  claim made by a noncontract provider which the organization

19  does not contest or deny within 35 days after receipt of the

20  claim by the health maintenance organization which is mailed

21  or electronically transferred by the provider.

22         (b)  A health maintenance organization that denies or

23  contests a provider's claim or any portion of a claim shall

24  notify the contract provider, in writing, within 35 days after

25  receipt of the claim by the health maintenance organization

26  receives the claim that the claim is contested or denied. The

27  notice that the claim is denied or contested must identify the

28  contested portion of the claim and the specific reason for

29  contesting or denying the claim, and, if contested, must may

30  include a request for additional information. If the provider

31  submits health maintenance organization requests additional

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  1  information, the provider must shall, within 35 days after

  2  receipt of the such request, mail or electronically transfer

  3  the information to the health maintenance organization. The

  4  health maintenance organization shall pay or deny the claim or

  5  portion of the claim within 45 days after receipt of the

  6  information.

  7         (3)(2)  Payment of a claim is considered made on the

  8  date the payment was received or electronically transferred or

  9  otherwise delivered. An overdue payment of a claim bears

10  simple interest at the rate of 10 percent per year. Interest

11  on an overdue payment for a clean claim or for any uncontested

12  portion of a clean claim begins to accrue on the 36th day

13  after the claim has been received. The interest is payable

14  with the payment of the claim.

15         (4)(3)  A health maintenance organization shall pay or

16  deny any claim no later than 120 days after receiving the

17  claim. Failure to do so creates an uncontestable obligation

18  for the health maintenance organization to pay the claim.

19         (5)(a)  If, as a result of retroactive review of

20  coverage decisions or payment levels, a health maintenance

21  organization determines that it has made an overpayment to a

22  provider for services rendered to a subscriber, the

23  organization must make a claim for such overpayment. The

24  organization may not reduce payment to that provider for other

25  services unless the provider agrees to the reduction or fails

26  to respond to the organization's claim as required in this

27  subsection.

28         (b)  A provider shall pay a claim for an overpayment

29  made by a health maintenance organization which the provider

30  does not contest or deny within 35 days after receipt of the

31

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  1  claim that is mailed or electronically transferred to the

  2  provider.

  3         (c)  A provider that denies or contests an

  4  organization's claim for overpayment or any portion of a claim

  5  shall notify the organization, in writing, within 35 days

  6  after the provider receives the claim that the claim for

  7  overpayment is contested or denied. The notice that the claim

  8  for overpayment is denied or contested must identify the

  9  contested portion of the claim and the specific reason for

10  contesting or denying the claim, and, if contested, must

11  include a request for additional information. If the

12  organization submits additional information, the organization

13  must, within 35 days after receipt of the request, mail or

14  electronically transfer the information to the provider. The

15  provider shall pay or deny the claim for overpayment within 45

16  days after receipt of the information.

17         (d)  Payment of a claim for overpayment is considered

18  made on the date payment was received or electronically

19  transferred or otherwise delivered to the organization, or the

20  date that the provider receives a payment from the

21  organization that reduces or deducts the overpayment. An

22  overdue payment of a claim bears simple interest at the rate

23  of 10 percent a year. Interest on an overdue payment of a

24  claim for overpayment or for any uncontested portion of a

25  claim for overpayment begins to accrue on the 36th day after

26  the claim for overpayment has been received.

27         (e)  A provider shall pay or deny any claim for

28  overpayment no later than 120 days after receiving the claim.

29  Failure to do so creates an uncontestable obligation for the

30  provider to pay the claim.

31

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  1         (6)(4)  Any retroactive reductions of payments or

  2  demands for refund of previous overpayments which are due to

  3  retroactive review-of-coverage decisions or payment levels

  4  must be reconciled to specific claims unless the parties agree

  5  to other reconciliation methods and terms. Any retroactive

  6  demands by providers for payment due to underpayments or

  7  nonpayments for covered services must be reconciled to

  8  specific claims unless the parties agree to other

  9  reconciliation methods and terms. The look-back period may be

10  specified by the terms of the contract.

11         (7)(a)  A provider claim for payment shall be

12  considered received by the health maintenance organization, if

13  the claim has been electronically transmitted to the health

14  maintenance organization, when receipt is verified

15  electronically or, if the claim is mailed to the address

16  disclosed by the organization, on the date indicated on the

17  return receipt. A provider must wait 45 days from receipt of a

18  claim before submitting a duplicate claim.

19         (b)  A health maintenance organization claim for

20  overpayment shall be considered received by a provider, if the

21  claim has been electronically transmitted to the provider,

22  when receipt is verified electronically or, if the claim is

23  mailed to the address disclosed by the provider, on the date

24  indicated on the return receipt. An organization must wait 45

25  days from the provider's receipt of a claim for overpayment

26  before submitting a duplicate claim.

27         (8)  A provider who bills electronically is entitled to

28  electronic acknowledgement of the receipt of a claim within 72

29  hours.

30

31

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  1         (9)  A health maintenance organization may not

  2  retroactively deny a claim more than 1 year after the date of

  3  service because of subscriber ineligibility.

  4         Section 4.  Section 641.3156, Florida Statutes, is

  5  created to read:

  6         641.3156  Treatment authorization; payment of claims.--

  7         (1)  A health maintenance organization must pay any

  8  hospital-service or referral-service claim for treatment for

  9  an eligible subscriber which was authorized by a physician

10  empowered by contract with the health maintenance organization

11  to authorize or direct the patient's utilization of health

12  care services and which was also authorized in accordance with

13  the health maintenance organization's current and communicated

14  procedures, unless the physician provided information to the

15  health maintenance organization with the willful intention to

16  misinform the health maintenance organization.

17         (2)  A claim for treatment may not be denied if a

18  provider follows the health maintenance organization's

19  authorization procedures and receives authorization for a

20  covered service for an eligible subscriber, unless the

21  physician provided information to the health maintenance

22  organization with the willful intention to misinform the

23  health maintenance organization.

24         (3)  Emergency services are subject to the provisions

25  of s. 641.513 and are not subject to the provisions of this

26  section.

27         Section 5.  Subsection (4) of section 641.495, Florida

28  Statutes, is amended to read:

29         641.495  Requirements for issuance and maintenance of

30  certificate.--

31

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  1         (4)  The organization shall ensure that the health care

  2  services it provides to subscribers, including physician

  3  services as required by s. 641.19(13)(d) and (e), are

  4  accessible to the subscribers, with reasonable promptness,

  5  with respect to geographic location, hours of operation,

  6  provision of after-hours service, and staffing patterns within

  7  generally accepted industry norms for meeting the projected

  8  subscriber needs. The health maintenance organization must

  9  have the capability of providing treatment authorization 24

10  hours a day, 7 days a week. Requests for treatment

11  authorization may not be held pending unless the requesting

12  provider contractually agrees to take a pending or tracking

13  number.

14         Section 6.  Effective January 1, 2001, section

15  408.7057, Florida Statutes, is created to read:

16         408.7057  Statewide provider and managed care

17  organization claim dispute resolution program.--

18         (1)  As used in this section, the term:

19         (a)  "Managed care organization" means a health

20  maintenance organization or a prepaid health clinic certified

21  under chapter 641, a prepaid health plan authorized under s.

22  409.912, or an exclusive provider organization certified under

23  s. 627.6472.

24         (b)  "Resolution organization" means a qualified

25  independent third-party claims dispute resolution entity

26  selected by and contracted with the Agency for Health Care

27  Administration.

28         (2)(a)  The Agency for Health Care Administration shall

29  establish a program to provide assistance to contracting and

30  noncontracting providers and managed care organizations for

31  claim disputes that are not resolved by the provider and the

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  1  managed care organization. The program must include the agency

  2  contracting with a resolution organization to timely review

  3  and consider claims disputes submitted by providers and

  4  managed care organizations and to recommend to the agency an

  5  appropriate resolution of those disputes. The agency shall

  6  establish by rule jurisdictional amounts and methods of

  7  aggregation for claims disputes that may be considered by the

  8  resolution organization.

  9         (b)  The resolution organization shall review claim

10  disputes filed by contracting and noncontracting providers and

11  managed care organizations unless the disputed claim:

12         1.  Is related to interest payment;

13         2.  Does not meet the jurisdictional amounts or the

14  methods of aggregation established by agency rule, as provided

15  in paragraph (a);

16         3.  Is part of an internal grievance in a Medicare

17  managed care organization or a reconsideration appeal through

18  the Medicare appeals process;

19         4.  Is related to a health plan that is not regulated

20  by the state, such as an administrative services organization,

21  a third-party administrator, or a federal employee health

22  benefit program;

23         5.  Is part of a Medicaid fair hearing pursued under 42

24  C.F.R. ss. 431.220 et seq.;

25         6.  Is the basis for an action pending in state or

26  federal court;

27         7.  Is subject to a binding claims dispute resolution

28  process provided by contract entered into prior to July 1,

29  2000, between the provider and the managed care organization;

30  or

31

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  1         8.  Is subject to a binding claims dispute resolution

  2  process provided by a contract entered into or renewed on or

  3  after July 1, 2000, in which the provider has elected to

  4  arbitrate the claim. All contracts entered into after the

  5  effective date of this act which provide for a binding claims

  6  dispute resolution process shall allow providers the option of

  7  pursuing either the contracted dispute resolution process or

  8  bringing the claim before the resolution organization created

  9  by this section.

10         (3)  The agency shall adopt rules to establish a

11  process for the consideration by the resolution organization

12  of claims disputes submitted by either a provider or managed

13  care organization which shall include the issuance by the

14  resolution organization of a written recommendation, supported

15  by findings of fact, to the agency within 60 days after

16  receipt of the claims dispute submission.

17         (4)  Within 30 days after receipt of the recommendation

18  of the resolution organization the agency shall issue a final

19  order subject to the provisions of chapter 120.

20         (5)  The entity that does not prevail in the agency's

21  order must pay a review cost to the review organization as

22  determined by agency rule, which shall include an

23  apportionment of the review fee in those cases where both

24  parties may prevail in part. The failure of the nonprevailing

25  party to pay the ordered review cost within 35 days after the

26  agency's order will subject the nonpaying party to a penalty

27  of no more than $500 per day until the penalty is paid.

28         (6)  The Agency for Health Care Administration may

29  adopt rules necessary to administer this section.

30         Section 7.  Paragraph (a) of subsection (2) of section

31  395.1065, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:

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  1         395.1065  Criminal and administrative penalties;

  2  injunctions; emergency orders; moratorium.--

  3         (2)(a)  The agency may deny, revoke, or suspend a

  4  license or impose an administrative fine, not to exceed $1,000

  5  per violation, per day, for the violation of any provision of

  6  this part or rules adopted under this part or s. 641.3154

  7  promulgated hereunder.  Each day of violation constitutes a

  8  separate violation and is subject to a separate fine. The

  9  agency may impose an administrative fine for the violation of

10  s. 641.3155 in amounts specified in s. 641.52.

11         Section 8.  Section 817.50, Florida Statutes, is

12  amended to read:

13         817.50  Fraudulently obtaining goods, services, etc.,

14  from a health care provider hospital.--

15         (1)  Whoever shall, willfully and with intent to

16  defraud, obtain or attempt to obtain goods, products,

17  merchandise or services from any health care provider, as

18  "provider" is defined in s. 641.19(15), hospital in this state

19  shall be guilty of a misdemeanor of the second degree,

20  punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.

21         (2)  If any person gives to any provider hospital in

22  this state a false or fictitious name or a false or fictitious

23  address or assigns to any provider hospital the proceeds of

24  any health maintenance contract or insurance contract, then

25  knowing that such contract is no longer in force, is invalid,

26  or is void for any reason, such action shall be prima facie

27  evidence of the intent of such person to defraud the provider

28  such hospital.

29         Section 9.  Except as otherwise provided, this act

30  shall take effect October 1, 2000, and shall apply to claims

31  for services rendered after such date and to all requests for

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    Florida Senate - 2000                    CS for CS for SB 1508
    317-2038-00




  1  claim-dispute resolution which are submitted by a provider or

  2  managed care organization 60 days after the effective date of

  3  the contract between the resolution organization and the

  4  agency.

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    Florida Senate - 2000                    CS for CS for SB 1508
    317-2038-00




  1          STATEMENT OF SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES CONTAINED IN
                       COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
  2                     CS for Senate Bill 1508

  3

  4  Amends and moves current law relating to provider balance
    billing of subscribers, revises current law relating to
  5  provider contracts, requires certain contractual disclosures
    of addresses and a telephone number, and requires procedures
  6  for requesting and granting authorization for utilizing health
    care services.
  7
    Prohibits balance billing during the pendency of a claim
  8  submitted by a provider for payment to an HMO. As relates to
    balance billing, creates a conclusive presumption, based on
  9  the absence of three specified circumstances, that a physician
    does not know and should not know that an organization is
10  liable for payment for services rendered to a subscriber.

11  Defines the term "clean claim." Prescribes when a claim may be
    considered clean or not clean. Requires the Department of
12  Insurance to adopt rules to establish a claim form and
    provides the department with discretionary rulemaking
13  authority for establishing coding standards both of which must
    be consistent with certain federal standards. Provides
14  requirements and timeframes for payment of a portion of a
    clean claim. Specifies timeframes for: denying and contesting
15  a claim and provides for an uncontestable obligation to pay a
    claim, submitting requested information, and submitting
16  duplicate claims. Provides a timeframe for accruing of
    interest and payment of an overdue payment of a clean claim or
17  an uncontested portion of a claim.

18  Requires a health maintenance organization to make a claim
    for overpayment to a provider based on retroactive review.
19  Prohibits a health maintenance organization from retroactively
    reducing payment for other services as adjustment for
20  overpayment, unless the provider agrees or does not respond to
    the claim for overpayment. Requires a provider to pay an
21  uncontested claim for overpayment by a health maintenance
    organization within a specified timeframe. Provides a
22  procedure and timeframes for a provider to notify a health
    maintenance organization that it is denying or contesting a
23  claim for overpayment. Specifies when a provider payment of a
    claim for overpayment is to be considered made to a health
24  maintenance organization. Provides for assessment of simple
    interest against overdue payment of a claim. Specifies when
25  interest on overdue payments of claims for overpayment begins
    to accrue. Specifies a timeframe for a provider to deny or
26  contest a claim for overpayment. Provides a timeframe for a
    provider to pay or deny a claim for overpayment and provides
27  an uncontestable obligation for payment of such a claim.

28  Specifies when a provider claim that is electronically
    transmitted or mailed is considered received. Specifies when a
29  health maintenance organization claim for overpayment that is
    electronically transmitted or mailed is considered received.
30  Requires a provider or health maintenance organization to wait
    a specified amount of time before submitting a duplicate
31  claim. Mandates acknowledgment of receipts for electronically
    submitted provider claims. Prescribes a timeframe after which
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    Florida Senate - 2000                    CS for CS for SB 1508
    317-2038-00




  1  a health maintenance organization is prohibited from denying a
    claim for services provided to an ineligible subscriber.
  2  Provides for treatment authorization and payment of claims.
    Provides for payment of claims for emergency services
  3  treatment. Revises provisions of current law relating to
    treatment authorization capabilities.
  4
    Applies current law relating to criminal and administrative
  5  penalties that may be assessed against a hospital or
    ambulatory surgical center for regulatory violations of
  6  licensure regulations to certain prohibited subscriber billing
    practices. Subjects a hospital or ambulatory surgical center
  7  to administrative fines that the Agency for Health Care
    Administration may assess against health maintenance
  8  organizations when a hospital violates certain requirements
    relating to payment of claims. Expands the applicability of a
  9  current provision of law relating to fraud against hospitals
    to health care providers, including hospitals.
10
    Excludes from consideration by the claim dispute resolution
11  organization, authorized by the bill to hear claim disputes
    between HMOs and providers, those disputes that are subject to
12  a contractually binding claims dispute resolution process that
    is provided for in a contract entered into prior to July 1,
13  2000, and excludes those claim disputes that the provider has
    elected to arbitrate in accordance with a contract entered
14  into or renewed on or after July 1, 2000. Requires that all
    contracts between providers and HMOs entered into after the
15  bill's effective date allow providers the option of either a
    contracted dispute resolution process or bringing claims
16  before the resolution organization.

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