| 1 | The Health Care Appropriations Committee recommends the |
| 2 | following: |
| 3 |
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| 4 | Council/Committee Substitute |
| 5 | Remove the entire bill and insert: |
| 6 | A bill to be entitled |
| 7 | An act relating to small business health care insurance |
| 8 | assistance; providing legislative intent; establishing a |
| 9 | pilot program to provide rebates to small businesses |
| 10 | providing comprehensive major medical health insurance |
| 11 | coverage for employees; requiring employer and employee |
| 12 | participation in certain costs; specifying the amount of |
| 13 | the rebate; providing for additional eligibility for |
| 14 | certain businesses; limiting authorization to provide |
| 15 | rebates under the program only pursuant to specific |
| 16 | appropriation; providing for administration of the program |
| 17 | by the Agency for Health Care Administration; requiring |
| 18 | the agency to adopt rules; providing enforcement and audit |
| 19 | authority for the agency; providing an effective date. |
| 20 |
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| 21 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 22 |
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| 23 | Section 1. (1) It is the intent of the Legislature to |
| 24 | encourage small businesses to provide comprehensive major |
| 25 | medical health insurance coverage to employees of the |
| 26 | businesses. |
| 27 | (2) The Small Business Health Care Insurance Assistance |
| 28 | Pilot Program is created as a statewide pilot program for a |
| 29 | period of 2 years to provide a one-time rebate for small |
| 30 | businesses that employ more than one but fewer than six |
| 31 | employees and that provide full coverage of comprehensive major |
| 32 | medical health insurance for such employees pursuant to s. |
| 33 | 627.6699, Florida Statutes. The employer shall pay at least 50 |
| 34 | percent but less than 100 percent of the cost of the coverage, |
| 35 | and the employees must share in the remainder of the cost of the |
| 36 | coverage. |
| 37 | (3)(a) The amount of the rebate shall be $1,000 per each |
| 38 | employee as reported on the business' Florida unemployment |
| 39 | compensation tax form 6. |
| 40 | (b) A small business must apply through the Agency for |
| 41 | Health Care Administration. |
| 42 | (c) A business is eligible for the rebate under this |
| 43 | section if, at the time of applying for a rebate under the pilot |
| 44 | program, the business had provided and paid for such coverage |
| 45 | for 12 consecutive months but had not provided and paid for such |
| 46 | coverage for at least 6 months prior to such 12-month period. |
| 47 | The business may receive the rebate only one time. |
| 48 | (d) The agency shall only provide rebates to eligible |
| 49 | businesses if a specific appropriation is made in the General |
| 50 | Appropriations Act for the purpose of providing rebates under |
| 51 | the pilot program. |
| 52 | (4) The pilot program shall be administered by the Agency |
| 53 | for Health Care Administration. The agency shall adopt any rules |
| 54 | pursuant to ss. 120.536(1) and 120.54, Florida Statutes, |
| 55 | necessary to administer and ensure accountability of the pilot |
| 56 | program and enforce compliance with the requirements of the |
| 57 | program. The agency may conduct audits of any business applying |
| 58 | for rebates under the program to ensure compliance with program |
| 59 | requirements. |
| 60 | Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2006. |