Drew Wilson
The House Health and Human Services Committee sent bills that would allow direct primary care agreements and overnight stays in ambulatory surgery centers to the House floor Thursday
HB 161 would allow patients and their physicians to enter into direct primary care agreements, an alternative to traditional health care plans.
Under such agreements, patients pay a flat fee to have all their primary care needs taken care of by a primary care doctor.
The bill was filed by the Health Innovation Subcommittee, with Reps. Daniel Burgess and Mike Miller serving as sponsors.
The House Health and Human Services Committee cleared the bill during its Thursday meeting, making HB 161 ready for the House floor.
The bill previously had been referred to the Health Care Appropriations Committee, though that assignment was removed before the 2017 Legislative Session kicked off last week.
The Senate version of the bill, SB 240 by Sen. Tom Lee, still has two committee stops left before its ready for a vote by the full Senate.
That bill has already cleared the Senate Banking and Insurance Committee and the Health Policy Committee with unanimous votes
The House Health and Human Services Committee also cleared HB 145, by Republican Reps. Paul Renner and Heather Fitzenhagen, which would allow patients to stay up to 24 hours in ambulatory surgery centers, a type of medical facility dedicated to less complicated, generally elective surgeries.
Current law forbids overnight stays in ASCs.
The House bill would also allow for recovery care centers, a different type of non-hospital medical facility where patients would be allowed to stay up to 72 hours.
The bill previously passed through the chamber’s Health Care Appropriations Subcommittee and the Health Innovation Subcommittee.
The Senate version of the bill, SB 222 by Sarasota Republican Sen. Greg Steube, has the same provision relating to ASCs, but the recovery care center portion of the bill was removed when it cleared the Health Policy Committee with a 4-1 vote earlier this week.
That bill must clear the Community Affairs Committee, the Appropriations Subcommittee on Health and Human Services and the full Senate Appropriations Committee before it’s ready for the Senate floor.
