House Bill 0071c1

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida House of Representatives - 2000               CS/HB 71

        By the Committee on Health Care Licensing & Regulation and
    Representative Lacasa





  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to the county public hospital

  3         surtax; amending s. 212.055, F.S.; revising

  4         provisions that require the counties authorized

  5         to levy the surtax to annually appropriate a

  6         specified minimum amount for operation,

  7         administration, and maintenance of the county

  8         public general hospital; providing procedure

  9         for disbursement of funds by certain counties;

10         requiring a public health authority or agency

11         in such counties to adopt and implement a

12         health care plan for indigent health care

13         services; specifying provisions of the plan;

14         providing an effective date.

15

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

17

18         Section 1.  Paragraph (d) of subsection (5) of section

19  212.055, Florida Statutes, is amended, paragraph (e) is

20  redesignated as paragraph (f), and a new paragraph (e) is

21  added to said subsection, to read:

22         212.055  Discretionary sales surtaxes; legislative

23  intent; authorization and use of proceeds.--It is the

24  legislative intent that any authorization for imposition of a

25  discretionary sales surtax shall be published in the Florida

26  Statutes as a subsection of this section, irrespective of the

27  duration of the levy.  Each enactment shall specify the types

28  of counties authorized to levy; the rate or rates which may be

29  imposed; the maximum length of time the surtax may be imposed,

30  if any; the procedure which must be followed to secure voter

31  approval, if required; the purpose for which the proceeds may

                                  1

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida House of Representatives - 2000               CS/HB 71

    601-168-00






  1  be expended; and such other requirements as the Legislature

  2  may provide.  Taxable transactions and administrative

  3  procedures shall be as provided in s. 212.054.

  4         (5)  COUNTY PUBLIC HOSPITAL SURTAX.--Any county as

  5  defined in s. 125.011(1) may levy the surtax authorized in

  6  this subsection pursuant to an ordinance either approved by

  7  extraordinary vote of the county commission or conditioned to

  8  take effect only upon approval by a majority vote of the

  9  electors of the county voting in a referendum.  In a county as

10  defined in s. 125.011(1), for the purposes of this subsection,

11  "county public general hospital" means a general hospital as

12  defined in s. 395.002 which is owned, operated, maintained, or

13  governed by the county or its agency, authority, or public

14  health trust.

15         (d)  The county shall continue to contribute each year

16  at least 80 percent of that percentage of the total county

17  budget appropriated for the operation, administration, and

18  maintenance of the county public general hospital from the

19  county's general revenues in the fiscal year of the county

20  ending September 30, 1991. Any county as defined in s.

21  125.011(1) that has a population of at least 1.8 million

22  residents shall disburse the funds defined in this paragraph

23  in the following manner:

24         1.  Sixty-five percent shall be promptly remitted to

25  the public health trust, agency, or authority responsible for

26  the county public general hospital.

27         2.  Thirty-five percent shall be promptly remitted to a

28  public health authority or agency that is wholly independent

29  from the public health trust, agency, or authority responsible

30  for the county public general hospital.

31

                                  2

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida House of Representatives - 2000               CS/HB 71

    601-168-00






  1         (e)  The public health authority or agency as described

  2  in subparagraph (d)2. shall adopt and implement a health care

  3  plan for indigent health care services. The plan shall include

  4  the following provisions:

  5         1.  The plan and subsequent amendments to it shall fund

  6  a broad range of health care services for both indigent

  7  persons and the medically poor, including, but not limited to,

  8  primary care and preventive care as well as hospital care.

  9  Where consistent with these objectives, the plan shall

10  include, without limitation, services rendered by physicians,

11  clinics, community hospitals, mental health centers, and

12  alternative delivery sites, as well as at least one regional

13  referral hospital where appropriate. The plan shall provide

14  that agreements negotiated between the county and providers

15  will include reimbursement methodologies that take into

16  account the cost of services rendered to eligible patients,

17  recognize hospitals that render a disproportionate share of

18  indigent care, provide other incentives to promote the

19  delivery of charity care to draw down federal funds where

20  appropriate, and require cost containment, including, but not

21  limited to, case management. The plan must also provide that

22  any hospitals owned and operated by government entities on or

23  after the effective date of this act must, as a condition of

24  receiving funds under this subsection, afford public access

25  equal to that provided under s. 286.011 as to any meeting of

26  the governing board the subject of which is budgeting

27  resources for the retention of charity care, as that term is

28  defined in the rules of the Agency for Health Care

29  Administration. The plan shall also include innovative health

30  care programs that provide cost-effective alternatives to

31  traditional methods of service and delivery funding.

                                  3

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida House of Representatives - 2000               CS/HB 71

    601-168-00






  1         2.  The plan's benefits shall be made available to all

  2  county residents currently eligible to receive health care

  3  services as indigents or medically poor as defined in

  4  paragraph (4)(d).

  5         3.  Eligible residents who participate in the health

  6  care plan shall receive coverage for a period of 12 months or

  7  the period extending from the time of enrollment to the end of

  8  the current fiscal year, per enrollment period, whichever is

  9  less.

10         Section 2.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2000.

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

28

29

30

31

                                  4