Senate Will Not Consider KidCare Expansion Effort

By CATHERINE DOLINSKI The Tampa Tribune

Published: May 3, 2007

TALLAHASSEE - In a year when state leaders vowed to make children's needs a priority, the Florida Senate is blocking efforts to reform and expand the state's health insurance program for poor children.

That sparked calls from Democrats and Republicans in the House to address KidCare during next month's special session that legislative leaders are holding to deal with property taxes.

"We cannot go another year with declining enrollment in our KidCare program," said Rep. Loranne Ausley, D-Tallahassee. "We cannot go another year without doing something. If we don't do it now, I'm going to demand it's in the call for a special session."

KidCare, a $55 million state-federal partnership, serves more than 215,000 low-income children, in addition to the nearly 1.2 million served through Medicaid. After years of watching flagging enrollment in the program, committees in both chambers proposed reforms to make it easier for more families to enroll - and stay enrolled

That could keep Florida from forfeiting millions in federal matching dollars for the program.

But Senate President Ken Pruitt said Wednesday that the Senate wouldn't consider either chamber's proposal, owing to what he described as a lack of consensus on the details among lawmakers, doctors, advocates and other stakeholders in the program.

HMOs Called Resistant

Advocates for children blamed resistance from health maintenance organizations that participate in KidCare. They would have to provide more benefits to many of those children if the House or Senate bill passed. The Senate version also would reduce the amount of money the state would pay HMOs to serve some children.

Among the main HMOs that participate in KidCare is Tampa-based WellCare Health Plans. Lobbyists for WellCare did not return phone calls.

Bob Wychulis, president of Florida Association of Health Plans, said he did not know of efforts by WellCare or any other member company to kill the bills. "My only comment is that there were many aspects of KidCare that we were supporting, including the expansion of dollars to grow the program."

Pruitt said he took responsibility for the decision. He refused, he said, to allow a last-minute KidCare deal to pass during the session's final hours.

"Hopefully between now and next year, all the parties who have been pulling this wagon in six different ways will now come together," he said. "We've been asking them to get together all the committee weeks that we've had, and they didn't do it."

The House and Senate plans differ on several key details, such as the House-only appropriation of $6 million to lift a freeze on enrollment of immigrants and children of state employees who do not qualify for federal matching dollars.

There also has been disagreement in the Senate over which state department should run the program. The House program proposes a study of the issue instead.

"There's a House bill waiting … that is the compromise position," said Rep. Bill Galvano, R-Bradenton, chairman of the committee that sponsored the House proposal. "If there are things about that bill that give them angst, we're willing to sit down and negotiate."

'Blame The Senate'

House Healthcare Council Chairman Aaron Bean, R-Fernandina Beach, lent his voice to Ausley's call for special-session attention to KidCare.

"We'll have a window; we already know we're coming back," Bean said.

Unwilling to take Pruitt's "no" for an answer, Galvano, Ausley and Bean took their case to Lt. Gov. Jeff Kottkamp on Wednesday, in hopes that he or Gov. Charlie Crist would pressure the Senate into action before the session ends. Crist has said that fixing what ails KidCare and enrolling more children is a priority.

Kottkamp said he is willing to help broker a deal, but only if the Senate is willing to come forward.

Wednesday evening, Pruitt sounded anything but willing. "Blame the Senate," he said. "It's OK. This is it - it's over."

Reporter Catherine Dolinski can be reached at (850) 222-8382 or cdolinski@tampatrib.com.