Governor DeSantis announced his Focus on Florida’s Future Budget, which includes critical investments that support the health of Florida’s communities. The Focus on Florida’s Future Budget demonstrates Governor and First Lady DeSantis’ continued commitment to public health and health care innovation.

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Source: Florida Department of Health

A House panel hears a presentation that reported the shortage could affect access to health care if current trends persist, as the supply of physicians could meet only 77% of the projected demand by 2035.

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Source: Health News Florida

State lawmakers are expected to make health care a top priority when they return to Tallahassee in January for the 2024 legislative session. One proposal would address Florida’s doctor shortage by getting rid of restrictions on where they can practice.

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Source: WCTV.tv

A student-run initiative at Florida State University is making a positive difference in the lives of Tallahassee’s homeless population.

It’s called the Homeless Outreach Medicine and Education (HOME) program and it seeks to provide potentially life-saving medical care and bridge the gap between people experiencing homelessness and healthcare professionals.

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Source: FSU College of Medicine/Tallahassee Democrat

The justices of the U.S. Supreme Court sent mixed signals Monday as they struggled to decide whether to give a thumbs up or thumbs down to the multi-billion dollar Purdue Pharma bankruptcy deal--a deal meant to compensate victims of the highly addictive pain killer OxyContin.

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Source: Health News Florida

About a decade ago, a new kind of mosquito began showing up in African cities. Native to Asia, Anopheles stephensi prefers crowded urban environments over rural ones. That spelled trouble: These mosquitoes transmit malaria.

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Source: Health News Florida

The Florida Department of Health recently released the 2023 Physician Workforce Annual Report. This report provides information about the state of the physician workforce in Florida, including practice patterns, geographical distributions, Medicare acceptance rates and more. A full copy of the report can be found here. Key findings, taken from the report, are presented below.

Key findings include: 

Of the physicians renewing their licenses and responding to the survey, 71.82% (56,769) said they were providing direct patient care in Florida. With respect to those physicians:

·    Statewide, 35.82% of Florida’s 67 counties have a per capita rate of 10 or fewer physicians per 10,000 population. 

·    Physicians providing direct patient care are generally concentrated in populous counties and within large, urban population centers. Survey results indicated that 98.11% of physicians work in urban counties while 1.89% work in Florida’s 31 rural counties. In all of the rural counties, at least 20% of physicians are primary care providers. 

·    Among physicians, 34.17% (19,396) are age 60 and older (page 10). 

·    For physicians under age 40, the percentage of female physicians is 46.21%. 

·    The top three specialty groups for physicians providing direct patient care in Florida are internal medicine at 28.11% (15,724), family medicine at 14.64% (8,191), and pediatrics at 7.89% (4,413).

·    Primary care physicians account for 31.63% of physicians providing direct patient care. 

·    In Florida, 77.45%(40,132) of physicians practice in an office setting and 20.17%(10,451) practice in a hospital (page 18). 

·    Survey results indicate 75.28% of physicians report they accept patients with Medicare (page 30) and 64.13% report they accept patients with Medicaid. 

·    A total of 9.56% (5,429) of physicians providing direct patient care plan to retire in the next five years.

Just over 2% (1,181) of physicians practice in Florida’s rural counties. Over the last ten years, the number of physicians who have indicated, through the survey, that they provide direct patient care in Florida has increased. However, there was a slight decrease between 2022 and 2023.

Source: Jarrod Fowler, MHA, FMA Director of Healthcare Policy and Innovation

UnitedHealthcare (UHC) is facing a class-action lawsuit, which claims the company used artificial intelligence in lieu of medical reviewers to inappropriately deny Medicare Advantage patients access to post-acute treatment. The suit alleges that the AI model has an error rate of around 90%, given that 90% of such denials that are challenged internally or through a judge are reversed. The suit further alleges that UHC utilized this technology knowing that only a small minority of policyholders would appeal their denied claims due to their impaired condition, lack of knowledge, or lack of resources. This story has been covered in detail by multiple outlets, including Ars Technica and StatNews. 

Meanwhile, according to an article published in Fierce Healthcare, the Minnesota attorney general is asking that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services investigate Humana’s Medicare Advantage program for wrongfully denying claims and overcharging subscribers on numerous occasions. 

As these stories are unfolding, Politico reports that a bipartisan group of lawmakers is expressing concern that some Medicare Advantage plans may be engaged in unscrupulous practices, such as denying care that traditional Medicare would have covered. Medicare Advantage plans have already come under scrutiny in recent years for having burdensome and potentially problematic prior authorization practices, which many policymakers have been seeking to reform through more oversight, transparency, and guardrails. 

The Politico article cites multiple bodies of research that illustrate the problems patients and caregivers can encounter as a result of the prior authorization process. While it remains to be seen whether new regulatory or legislative actions will be taken, momentum for change appears to be building. That said, cost concerns and fierce lobbying by health insurers may influence the scope of any reforms that are enacted.

Source: Jarrod Fowler, MHA, FMA Director of Healthcare Policy and Innovation

UF Health Central Florida is celebrating the 100th procedure using the latest-generation WATCHMAN FLX™ left atrial appendage closure device. The procedure was performed at UF Health Leesburg Hospital by interventional cardiologist Maria Baldasare, MD.

“The WATCHMAN procedure is a way in which we can take people off blood thinners and still protect them from stroke,” Baldasare said. “Patients get a similar benefit as if they were taking an anticoagulant, Eliquis or warfarin for example, but without that bleeding complication that may occur.”

UF Health Leesburg Hospital was the first in Lake County to offer the device designed to treat patients who develop a potentially dangerous heart rhythm condition known as atrial fibrillation, or AF. An estimated 7 million Americans are affected by AF — an irregular heartbeat that can feel like a quivering heart. People with AF have a greater risk of stroke than those with normal heart rhythms. 

Dr. Baldasare’s patient, Philip Martin, 82, of Summerfield, Fla, received the 100th WATCHMAN device. Martin is a cancer survivor and his own father died from a massive stroke. He was diagnosed with AF last year, at the same time he was diagnosed with cancer and was prescribed a daily blood thinner.

UF Health Central Florida interventional cardiologist Maria Baldasare, MD, and her patient, Philip Martin, of Summerfield, Fla. Under Dr. Baldasare’s care, Martin became the 100th UF Health Central Florida patient to receive the WATCHMAN FLXTM left atrial appendage closure device. This safe, minimally invasive implant reduces patients’ risk of stroke, ultimately providing an alternative to lifelong use of blood thinners.“When they mentioned there is something to catch the block clots, that perked my ears up a bit,” said Martin. “I never know when I’m in AF. I asked Dr. Baldasare when am I in AF, and she said, ‘You’re in it right now.’ ”

He learned about the WATCHMAN procedure a few months ago and the benefit it provides in not having to take a daily blood thinner.

“A lot of our patients, especially those who live in The Villages, are very active,” Dr. Baldasare explained. “They play pickle ball and other activities, and it can be quite hazardous if they’re on a blood thinner. So, from a physician satisfaction standpoint, it is actually gratifying to see them do what they like and not be in fear of falling or having a head bleed for example. For the patient, it’s the ultimate return to their quality of life, especially for Mr. Martin. We don’t have to worry about him bleeding and having to come into the hospital all the time.”

The WATCHMAN FLX™ device, built upon the most studied and implanted left atrial appendage closure device in the world, is an alternative to the lifelong use of blood thinners for people with atrial fibrillation that is not caused by a structural heart valve problem (also known as nonvalvular AF). Several UF Health Central Florida cardiologists use the WATCHMAN device, including:

·    Sujata Balulad, MD

·    Maria Baldasare, MD

·    Christopher Jones, MD

·    David Lew, MD

·    Satish Goel, MD

·    Srinivas Attanti, MD

“UF Health Central Florida is proud to offer a world-class heart and vascular program, which provides immediate access to highly sophisticated treatment options and exceptional care to our patients,” says Heather Long, MSN, chief executive officer at UF Health Central Florida. “We strive to be this region’s premier destination for advanced cardiovascular services and the WATCHMAN FLX™ device provides potentially life-changing stroke risk treatment.” 

The device closes off an area of the heart called the left atrial appendage to keep harmful blood clots from entering the bloodstream and potentially causing a stroke. By closing off this area of the heart, the risk of stroke may be reduced and, over time, patients may be able to stop taking blood-thinning medication. The latest-generation technology has a new design aimed at helping to treat patients even more effectively to ensure the best possible long-term outcomes. 

“With the WATCHMAN procedure, it won’t change the fact Martin has AF,” said Kathy Hough, RN, structural heart coordinator at UF Health Leesburg Hospital. “He’ll still have AF and the device doesn’t control the heart rhythm, but it will put him at a lower risk for having a stroke. It gives patients the freedom of not having to take an anticoagulant so that they can enjoy life.”

The WATCHMAN is a permanent device that does not have to be replaced and can’t be seen outside the body. The procedure to place it is performed under general anesthesia and takes about an hour. Some patients leave the hospital the same day of the procedure. Others spend one or two nights in the hospital. For Martin, the WATCHMAN has improved his quality of life in a short amount of time.

“I feel good about it,” said Martin. “A lot of these meds are hard on your kidneys. I feel good anytime you don’t have to take a medication — and I take a lot of medication. But I won’t have to take a blood thinner now. That’s a huge positive for me.”

Source: Special to the FMA from UF Health

CEs that can be used for certification and credential renewal. Join us for an educational day of advocacy! Please share within your networks. Sign up below.

If you’re interested, fill out our interest form, by clicking the link: Register HERE and select the informational training session you would like to attend.

To view the policy brief, click here.

For any additional information, please contact [email protected] or 850-296-3481.

Source: Florida Community Health Worker Coalition

To: All Physicians and Interested Parties,

In anticipation for the 2024 Regular Legislative Session, preparations for this program are underway.

You can find information regarding the Doctor of the Day program, as well as the Doctor of the Day application HERE.

Please contact me regarding any questions or concerns.

Thank you,

Kelly Welborn

Office of Legislative Services

Claude Pepper Building, Room 874

111 West Madison Street

Tallahassee, Florida 32399-1400

(850) 717-0301

[email protected]

The Florida Medical Association (FMA) has announced they will be providing the 8-hour, required DEA continuing education requirement through their CME portal: www.flmedical.org.

Here is the clickable link to the FMA site for further information and courses. Sign in is required, membership is not required.

Course fees apply: Member $200 / Non-Member $300 for the one-time requirement.

Overloaded? Stressed? You're Not Alone.

Does your workday start before dawn and end well after dusk? Do you go to bed tired and wake up the same way? Maybe it’s time you talk to someone who can help you make positive changes for a healthier, happier life and lifestyle. The CMS has five professional counselors who are available to you - free of charge - free of worry. This program remains one of the few in the state that serves all local practicing physicians and TMH Residents, without cost, without question. Six sessions annually are completely confidential and autonomous. 

WELLNESS COACHES: 

Click here to view the December 2023 Cap Scan.