| 1 | The Insurance Committee recommends the following: |
| 2 |
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| 3 | Council/Committee Substitute |
| 4 | Remove the entire bill and insert: |
| 5 | A bill to be entitled |
| 6 | An act relating to health insurance; amending s. 627.419, |
| 7 | F.S.; providing for payments to a physician assistant |
| 8 | under contracts providing for paying for surgical first |
| 9 | assisting benefits or services; including certified |
| 10 | surgical first assistants, as defined, within certain |
| 11 | benefits or services payment provisions; limiting |
| 12 | application; providing an effective date. |
| 13 |
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| 14 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 15 |
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| 16 | Section 1. Subsection (6) of section 627.419, Florida |
| 17 | Statutes, is amended to read: |
| 18 | 627.419 Construction of policies.-- |
| 19 | (6)(a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, when |
| 20 | any health insurance policy, health care services plan, or other |
| 21 | contract provides for payment for surgical first assisting |
| 22 | benefits or services, the policy, plan, or contract is to be |
| 23 | construed as providing for payment to a physician assistant or |
| 24 | registered nurse first assistant or employers of a physician |
| 25 | assistant or registered nurse first assistant who performs such |
| 26 | services that are within the scope of a physician assistant's or |
| 27 | a registered nurse first assistant's professional license. The |
| 28 | provisions of This paragraph applies subsection apply only if |
| 29 | reimbursement for an assisting physician, licensed under chapter |
| 30 | 458 or chapter 459, would be covered and a physician assistant |
| 31 | or a registered nurse first assistant who performs such services |
| 32 | is used as a substitute. |
| 33 | (b) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, when any |
| 34 | health insurance policy, health care services plan, or other |
| 35 | contract provides for payment for surgical first assisting |
| 36 | benefits or services, the policy, plan, or contract is to be |
| 37 | construed as providing for payment to a certified surgical first |
| 38 | assistant or to the employer of a certified surgical first |
| 39 | assistant who performs such services that are assigned by the |
| 40 | supervising physician or osteopathic physician. This paragraph |
| 41 | applies only if reimbursement for an assisting physician, |
| 42 | licensed under chapter 458 or chapter 459, would be covered and |
| 43 | the certified surgical first assistant who performs such |
| 44 | services is used as a substitute. As used in this paragraph, the |
| 45 | term "certified surgical first assistant" means a person who is |
| 46 | an unlicensed health care provider that is directly accountable |
| 47 | to a physician licensed under chapter 458, an osteopathic |
| 48 | physician licensed under chapter 459, or, in the absence of a |
| 49 | physician or osteopathic physician, a registered nurse licensed |
| 50 | under chapter 464, and who is certified by the National Surgical |
| 51 | Assistant Association on the Certification of Surgical |
| 52 | Assistants, the Liaison Council on Certification of Surgical |
| 53 | Technologists, or the American Board of Surgical Assistants. |
| 54 | Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2005. |