Gov. DeSantis signs Kathleen Passidomo’s signature ‘Live Healthy’ package

TALLAHASSEE, FLA. 3/8/24-Senate President Kathleen Passidomo, R-Naples, speaks during a news conference with Gov. Ron DeSantis on the close of the 2024 Legislative Session Friday at the Capitol in Tallahassee. COLIN HACKLEY PHOTO

Gov. Ron DeSantis has signed a health care overhaul orchestrated by Senate President Kathleen Passidomo, who called it the pinnacle of her legislative career.

The suite of bills (SB 1758, SB 7016, SB 7018 and SB 330) deal with everything from where babies are born to the creation of new behavioral health teaching hospitals. But the core of the legislation is designed to boost the number of health care professionals working in a state that is growing yet also getting older.

“This is a game changer, our state will forever be changed,” said Passidomo before DeSantis signed the bills at an event held in Bonita Springs. Joining DeSantis and Passidomo were Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo, Agency for Persons with Disabilities Director Taylor Hatch and Tampa General Hospital CEO Jon Couris, along with a bevy of legislators involved in passing the bills.

Combined, the bills infuse about $1.2 billion into Florida’s health care workforce so the state can prepare for a burgeoning and aging population.

Live Healthy does not include a Medicaid expansion as allowable under the federal health care law often referred to as Obamacare. Passidomo repeatedly throughout the 2024 Session said expanding Medicaid would not guarantee access to health care. She reiterated those comments Thursday at the bill signing.

Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried, who noted that Saturday is the 14th anniversary of the Affordable Care Act, criticized the Legislature for not doing more to help low-income uninsured residents.

“Republicans had a chance to do something to bring down costs for Floridians during this legislative session — instead they passed these bills, which are a dollar short and a day late,” Fried said in a statement.

“They could have used this session to expand Medicaid coverage for over 800,000 Floridians who would be eligible — but they didn’t. The reality is, ‘living healthy’ is still unaffordable in Florida and these bills will do nothing to change that for millions of Floridians who are already struggling right now with the highest cost of living in the country. Federal programs like the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and Medicaid are a lifeline for people who become unexpectedly sick and face medical bills for frequent doctor’s appointments, expensive medications, hospitalization, and surgeries. Republicans in Florida and nationwide are running on an anti-healthcare agenda that will hurt Floridians the most. “

SB 7016, which DeSantis referred to as “the big one” during the bill signing contains a $717,105,294 appropriation. Of that, $134.6 million is to enhance hospital Medicaid reimbursement rates to support moms and babies during labor and delivery,

Another $5 million for LINE and PIPELINE programs. LINE, or Linking Industry to Nursing Education, provides matching funds on a dollar-to-dollar basis to state colleges, school district postsecondary technical career centers, charter technical career centers and accredited Florida independent nonprofit colleges or universities located and chartered in Florida authorized by the Department of Education to grant baccalaureate degrees

PIPELINE, or Prepping Institutions, Programs, Employers, and Learners through Incentives for Nursing Education, is a fund that allows district career centers, charter technical career centers, Florida College System, and State University System institutions to apply for grants.

SB 7016 also spends an additional $50 million for graduate medical education to expand Slots for Doctors, creating 500 new residency slots to address workforce shortages. The current year budget included $25.5 million to fund 255 residents in hospitals across the state.

DeSantis said SB 7016 builds off the state’s past efforts to bolster the health care workforce.

“We need to have a great health care workforce, which is something that’s important, and, in a growing state, this is going to be needed. You’re talking about underserved areas you’re talking about in low-income areas, you’re talking about having more flexibility for health care providers to be able to attract graduates from other states to be able to come and serve our residents,” DeSantis said.

While Passidomo took the lead on the Live Healthy initiative, she gave DeSantis the credit for SB 330. “I want to thank Governor DeSantis because it was actually his idea, and I just took it and ran with it,” she said.

The bill establishes new health teaching hospitals specializing in behavioral health education and training. Four facilities — Tampa General Hospital, UF Health Shands Hospital, UF Health Jacksonville and Jackson Memorial Hospital — are cited in the law as behavioral teaching hospitals, but the law allows up to five other facilities to earn the designation over the next year.

Behavioral health teaching hospitals will annually qualify for $1.5 million in graduate medical education funds but can also apply for funds from the newly established $300 million Training, Education, and Clinicals in Health Funding (TEACH) grant program.

Passidomo said the new teaching hospitals are important because they are “going to train the next generation of professionals in innovative and in integrated care for those with behavioral health needs.”

Couris, who heads Tampa General Hospital, praised DeSantis and legislative leadership for their willingness to work with the hospital industry on new innovations.

Couris specifically praised DeSantis for his immediate willingness after first being elected Governor to tackle mental health issues.

“One of the first things that the Governor and the First Lady decided to tackle when he became Governor was behavioral health issues was one of the most challenging and complex issues not just in the state, but across our country,” Couris said.

“That immediately said to me, we have a leader here to lead the state of Florida and we have a First Lady who is deeply committed to that. While these challenges are complex, they are not insurmountable. Through innovation, we can transform the delivery of care, increase access of care, and improve patient outcomes.”

Meanwhile, SB 1758 directs APD to offer waiver services to individuals on a waitlist — now called pre-enrollment — for iBudget services. The bill appropriates $38,852,223 in recurring funds for the program.

The bill also directs APD and the Agency for Health Care Administration, in consultation with other stakeholders, to jointly develop a comprehensive plan for the administration, finance, and delivery of home — and community-based services through a new Medicaid waiver program for these services.

Meanwhile, SB 7018 appropriates $50 million in nonrecurring funds to a health care innovation fund in the Fiscal Year 2024-25 budget and establishes in statute the Legislature’s intent to appropriate $50 million in nonrecurring funds for the next decade.