| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to health care disclosure; providing |
| 3 | definitions; requiring the Office of Insurance Regulation |
| 4 | of the Department of Financial Services to identify |
| 5 | employers of persons receiving certain medical assistance |
| 6 | and employers of proposed beneficiaries of certain health |
| 7 | care benefits; requiring reports to the Legislature; |
| 8 | providing for public access to such information; providing |
| 9 | an effective date. |
| 10 |
|
| 11 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 12 |
|
| 13 | Section 1. Medical assistance.-- |
| 14 | (1) For purposes of this section: |
| 15 | (a) "Small employer" means any person, firm, corporation, |
| 16 | partnership, association, political subdivision, or self- |
| 17 | employed individual that is actively engaged in business that, |
| 18 | during the preceding calendar quarter, employed no more than 50 |
| 19 | employees who worked an average of 30 or more hours per week. |
| 20 | (b) "Large employer" means any person, firm, corporation, |
| 21 | partnership, association, political subdivision, or self- |
| 22 | employed individual that is actively engaged in business that, |
| 23 | during the preceding calendar quarter, employed more than 50 |
| 24 | employees who worked an average of 30 or more hours per week. |
| 25 | (2) On or before February 1 of each year, the Office of |
| 26 | Insurance Regulation of the Department of Financial Services |
| 27 | shall provide to the appropriate committees of the Senate and |
| 28 | House of Representatives a report that identifies employers |
| 29 | whose employees are receiving benefits through medical |
| 30 | assistance for themselves or their dependents. The report must |
| 31 | include whether the employer is a large employer or a small |
| 32 | employer, and for each employer: |
| 33 | (a) The name and address of the employer. |
| 34 | (b) The number of employees who are receiving benefits |
| 35 | through medical assistance. |
| 36 | (c) The number of enrollees who are spouses or dependents |
| 37 | of their employees. |
| 38 | (d) Whether the employer offers health benefits to his or |
| 39 | her employees. |
| 40 | (e) The cost to the state of providing medical assistance |
| 41 | for their employees and enrolled dependents. |
| 42 | Section 2. Health care benefits.-- |
| 43 | (1) Any applicant for health care benefits under public |
| 44 | assistance programs, including, but not limited to, Medicaid or |
| 45 | the Children's Medical Services Network, shall identify the |
| 46 | employer or employers of the proposed beneficiary of the health |
| 47 | care benefits. In the event the proposed beneficiary is not |
| 48 | employed, the applicant shall identify the employer or employers |
| 49 | of any adult who is responsible for providing all or some of the |
| 50 | proposed beneficiary's support. As used in this section, the |
| 51 | term "proposed beneficiary" means any individual who files an |
| 52 | application for benefits for himself or herself or any other |
| 53 | individual on whose behalf an application is filed, including, |
| 54 | but not limited to, children or other dependents of the |
| 55 | applicant or other individual for whom the application is filed. |
| 56 | (2) On or before July 1 of each year, the Office of |
| 57 | Insurance Regulation of the Department of Financial Services |
| 58 | shall provide to the appropriate committees of the Senate and |
| 59 | House of Representatives a report that identifies employers of a |
| 60 | proposed beneficiary, or of the adult responsible for a proposed |
| 61 | beneficiary's support, of applicants for health care benefits |
| 62 | pursuant to the requirements in subsection (1). The report shall |
| 63 | include the name and address of the employer and the total |
| 64 | number of employees and dependants who are enrolled in each |
| 65 | state-funded health care program. No other information regarding |
| 66 | program beneficiaries shall be included in the report. In |
| 67 | addition to filing the report with the appropriate committees of |
| 68 | the Senate and the House of Representatives, the office shall |
| 69 | make the report available to the public through the office's |
| 70 | Internet website. Any member of the public shall have the right |
| 71 | to request and receive a copy of the report published pursuant |
| 72 | to this subsection. |
| 73 | Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2005. |