For Immediate Release: July 30, 2010
Contact: Vicki Twogood 850-413-5923
TALLAHASSEE—The Insurance Consumer Advocate, Sean Shaw, will host a roundtable on Personal Injury Protection (PIP) coverage. The roundtable will bring together members of the insurance industry, medical providers, attorneys and other professionals who work directly with claims involving personal injury protection coverage.
The National Insurance Crime Bureau recently released a report which indicates that questionable claims involving staged vehicle accidents have significantly increased in Florida between 2008 and 2009. This increase has been partially attributed to Florida’s Motor Vehicle No-Fault Law which requires registered vehicle owners and drivers to maintain PIP coverage. PIP coverage is intended to provide coverage for medical expenses for minor injuries sustained in a vehicle crash and curb litigation costs for minor injuries and non-economic damages without regards to fault. However, some think that the cost of the abuse and fraudulent activities associated with PIP coverage may outweigh the intended benefits.
The Insurance Consumer Advocate and the roundtable participants will review ways to curb fraudulent activities, improve the claims process, and ensure that the licensure of health care clinics is adequate. The goal is to ensure that PIP coverage remains a cost-effective means for Floridians to receive medical treatment for minor injuries and to help control automobile insurance rates.
DATE: Wednesday, August 4, 2010
TIME: 9:00 A.M. – 12:00 P.M.
1:00 P.M. – 4:00 P.M.
LOCATION: House Office Building, 4th Floor
Committee Room 404
The Capitol
Tallahassee, FL 32399
A copy of the agenda will be posted on the Insurance Consumer Advocate’s website at: http://www.myfloridacfo.com/ICA/. Public Comments will be heard in the afternoon session. Those unable to attend the meeting may listen via conference call at Dial-in Number: (888) 808-6959, Conference Code: 4132880 or watch the roundtable on the Florida Channel’s website at http://www.wfsu.org/tfc/index.php.
The Participants of the Personal Injury Protection Roundtable Include:
Sean M. Shaw, Esq. Tallahassee
Insurance Consumer Advocate
Honorable Bryan Nelson Apopka
Florida House of Representatives – District -38
Insurance, Business & Financial Affairs Policy Committee
Blanca Aparicio, Manager Miami
Special Investigation Unit
United Automobile Insurance Company
Dr. Barry Burak Miami
Affiliated Healthcare Centers, Inc.
Deborah J. Cunningham, Manager Tampa
Florida Special Investigations Unit
Nationwide, Allied, Titan, & Victoria Insurance Companies
Kenneth J. Dorchak, Esq. North Miami
Buchalter, Hoffman & Dorchak
Kim Driggers, Esq., Assistant General Counsel Tallahassee
Florida Chiropractic Association
Scott W. Dutton, Esq. Tampa
Dutton Law Group, PA
Wade Fairchild St. Petersburg
PIP Claim Process Specialist
Allstate
Ralph Glatfelter Tallahassee
Florida Hospital Association
Howard Goldblatt, Director of Government Affairs Washington, DC
Coalition Against Insurance Fraud
Dr. Gary Kompothecras Sarasota
Physicians Group LLC
Belinda Miller Tallahassee
Deputy Insurance Commissioner Property & Casualty Insurance
Office of Insurance Regulation
Tracy T. Pickard, Director Tampa
Special Investigations
Direct General Insurance
Chris Shakib, Esq. Jacksonville
Terrell Hogan Law Firm
Dr. Todd Sussman, C.D. Weston
Total Healthcare of Florida
Captain Steven Smith Miami
Department of Financial Services, Division of Insurance Fraud
Operations and Investigations, Miami - Dade Region
Jessica Turner, CFE, CIFI Davie
Special Investigations Manager
Farmers Insurance Group
Johnny Moore, Esq. Tallahassee
Deputy Insurance Consumer Advocate
Office of the Insurance Consumer Advocate
R. Terry Butler, Esq. Tallahassee
Senior Attorney
Office of the Insurance Consumer Advocate
Reamonn Soto, FAMU Intern Tallahassee
Academy of Leadership and Excellence Program (A.L.Ex.)
Office of the Insurance Consumer Advocate
The Insurance Consumer Advocate is appointed by Florida CFO Alex Sink and is committed to finding solutions to insurance issues facing Floridians, calling attention to questionable insurance practices, promoting a viable insurance market responsive to the needs of Florida’s diverse population and assuring that rates are fair and justified.