July 23rd, 2010
The contract expiration date for one of Central Florida’s largest hospitals, Florida Hospital, and one its largest health carriers, United Healthcare, is rapidly approaching. According to the Orlando Sentinel, the two companies have been at the negotiating table since last November to no avail.
Both entities have sent letters to United Healthcares’ insureds informing them of an August 15th expiration date and the fact it does not appear that a new contract will be inplace in time to extend service. The letters go on to say that if the insured is a patient of a doctor employed by Florida Hospital, that patient will no longer be covered under any of United’s insurance plans. Any service provided would then be considered “out-of-network”. And because the urgent care provider CentraCare is also owned by Florida Hospital, those too would be considered an out-of-network provider.
Patients are urged to discuss this situation with their physicians to find out (1) if their doctor has medical privileges at another local hospital, or (2) get a referral to a doctor who does have priviledges at another hospital. The second option can be a difficult one for patients if they have a serious medical condition and they have long term relationship with their doctor. It can be very unsettling.
I know that the whole nationalized healthcare issue is a hot potato that no seems to want to touch. But if they could at least establish fair and reasonable rates for all medical services, including physicians, hospitals and labs, everyone would be on the same playing field playing by the same rules. Because the only one that gets hurt by all of this squabbling is the patient.
Tags: heathcare
Posted in
Insurance Claim Disputes |
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July 21st, 2010
As much as we all hate to admit it, we have come to expect deadly traffic accidents on our streets and highway. But on our beaches? This week a 4-year old Deltona boy was killed while playing on one of Florida’s beaches. This is the eigth incident involving 10 accident victims on Volusia County’s beaches since March 2009. Back in March a 4-year old British girl was hit and killed while walking with her grandfather on the beach.
After each one of these terrible accidents the debate begins again – should driving be allowed on Florida’s beaches?
To many people, the beach is nature’s playground where you should be able to run, swim and soak up the sun without the fear of being run over by a car or truck. Folks are constantly moving their cars as the tide shifts and the driving lanes are moved in and out with the tide. At times the lanes are very close to the shore which doesn’t leave a lot of room between the parked cars and the driving lanes. It can really be dangerous.
For other folks, it’s a long-standing tradition and proponents say what is needed are more patrols to keep the beach-goers safe, not a ban on driving. Some say that not that many people are injured by cars on the beach and the risks are acceptable. All I can say is tell that to the parents of those 4 -year-old children who have died.
However, driving on the beach also happens to be written into the County Charter. The Charter requires that the county provide adequate parking to allow everyone public access to the beach. Without parking on the beach, additional parking lots would need to be added. While nothing has been done yet, several county officials have suggested that driving on the beach be put to the voters via a referendum in November.
According to The Daytona Beach News-Journal, 919,652 vehicles traveled on approximately 17 miles of beach from February to November last year. That’s over 3,000 vehicles a day. Knowing that a lot more people go to the beach on the week-ends and holidays, you’re looking at significantly more traffic on Saturday, Sunday or holidays.
There is a lot that needs to be done before there can be a ban on driving on the beach. It will take time and a lot effort to convince some that it the right thing to do. It will also require that county officials finally take their heads out of the sand and admit that it is their responsibility to keep their tourists and beach-goers safe on their beaches. Doing nothing should no longer be acceptable.
Tags: beach accident
Posted in
Tourist Injuries |
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June 16th, 2010
Orlando personal injury attorneys Council Wooten, Jr. and Orman L. Kimbrough, Jr. have been named Florida Super Lawyers for 2010. This is the fifth year in a row that Mr. Wooten has received this recognition and it is fourth year for Mr. Kimbrough.
Super Lawyers is a listing of outstanding lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. Super Lawyers is published as a special supplement in leading newspapers and city and regional magazines across the country. Super Lawyers magazine, featuring articles about attorneys named to the Super Lawyers list, is distributed to all attorneys in the state or region, the lead corporate counsel of Russell 3000 companies and the ABA-approved law school libraries.
In February of this year, SuperLawyers magazine was acquired by Thomson Reuters. While the SuperLawyer listing has gained been recognized as a superior attorney rating system, the acquisition by Thomson Reuters “the world’s leading source of intelligent information for businesses and professionals” gives significant status to the title “SuperLawyer.”
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