Life and politics from the Sunshine State's best city

Author

Michael Moline - page 26

Michael Moline has 306 articles published.

Michael Moline is a former assistant managing editor of The National Law Journal and managing editor of the San Francisco Daily Journal. Previously, he reported on politics and the courts in Tallahassee for United Press International. He is a graduate of Florida State University, where he served as editor of the Florida Flambeau. His family’s roots in Jackson County date back many generations.

Supreme Court limits information insurers may demand under PIP policies

in Statewide by

The Florida Supreme Court has taken a narrow view of the amount of evidence hospitals and other health care providers are obliged to turn over to insurance companies concerning the reasonableness of personal injury protection claims. In a unanimous ruling, the court sided with the 1st District Court of Appeal over the 4th District Court of Appeal, which had issued conflicting interpretations of Florida’s PIP statute. “We conclude that discovery is limited to the production of a written report of…

Keep Reading

You might be interested in

Appeals court reverses ruling striking limits on PIP payments to chiropractors

in Statewide by

A state appeals court has upheld a law limiting payments to chiropractors under reforms to Florida’s personal-injury protection insurance system the Legislature approved in 2012. The 3rd District Court of Appeal on Wednesday reversed a ruling by Miami-Dade County Circuit Judge Michaelle Gonzalez-Paulson holding that the limits were unconstitutional. “We must presume that the Legislature conducted its own evaluation of the respective professionals’ qualifications,” the appeals court wrote. “When no suspect class or fundamental right is implicated, our inquiry is limited to whether…

Keep Reading

You might be interested in

Drive for assignment of benefits reform picks up steam

in Statewide by

The prospect that a national rating firm might downgrade Florida insurance companies because of rising costs linked to assignment of benefits agreements has lit a fire under advocates of reforming those contracts. “This issue is having a real effect on the pocketbooks of working Floridians and it’s time we take steps to clean up the process,” state Rep. Ben Diamond said in a written statement Wednesday. “Homeowners deserve a real, consumer-driven solution that ensures that legitimate claims are paid while putting a…

Keep Reading

You might be interested in

Senate may balk at Rick Scott’s plan to hit hospitals over charity care

in Statewide by

Gov. Rick Scott‘s proposal to cut Medicaid reimbursement payments to profitable hospitals that stint on charity care may run into trouble in the Senate. During hearings Wednesday before the Appropriations Subcommittee on Health and Human Services, members including Chairwoman Anitere Flores raised objections. “The governor’s office has made some assumptions, based on the fact that some hospitals are very profitable, that they can afford a cut,” Flores said following the meeting. “I’m hearing very different things from our local hospitals,” she…

Keep Reading

You might be interested in

Lawyers for the state tell Senate committee they need pay raises, too

in Statewide by

State attorneys and public defenders face off in court, but they agreed on one thing during a meeting Wednesday of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Criminal and Civil Justice: Their staff attorneys need pay raises. Trouble is, committee chairman Aaron Bean isn’t convinced there’ll be enough money to pay for that, as much as he sympathizes. “The secret is that there’s just not going to be enough money to cover everybody’s requests,” Bean said following the hearing. “That’s why we…

Keep Reading

You might be interested in

Rick Scott’s budget would raid affordable housing trust funds

in Statewide by

Gov. Rick Scott’s proposed budget would shift nearly 77 percent of the $293.4 million earmarked for low-income housing next year to other state priorities. That works out to $224 million from state and local housing trust funds that won’t go for their intended purpose. State law reserves a portion of the take from documentary stamp tax on real estate transactions for low-income housing. The trust fund total is an estimate reached by state economists in December, and could vary depending on…

Keep Reading

You might be interested in

Jim Boyd calls Rick Scott’s $618 million in tax cuts ‘a little bit ambitious’

in Statewide by

Gov. Rick Scott may be overreaching with his plan to cut state taxes by $618.4 million, the chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee said Tuesday. “I would consider it a little bit ambitious, in light of our current financial situation,” chairman Jim Boyd told reporters after Scott’s aides briefed his committee. “We certainly share the goal of trying to cut as much as we can in taxes and keep the money in the taxpayers’ pockets,” the Bradenton Republican said. “Six hundred million…

Keep Reading

You might be interested in

1 … 24 25 26 27 28 … 44
Go to Top