State finds new wrinkles as licensing deal unfolds
By HOWARD TROXLER
Published February 17, 2004
Last Tuesday's column was about how a big campaign contributor got a contract from Gov. Jeb Bush's administration. That contributor's company will have a role in keeping records on Florida's roughly 470,000 health care professionals.
Specifically, the column reported that:
(1) The company's founder, J. Thomas Solano, donated $43,750 to the Florida Republican Party and members of the state Cabinet in recent years, the last $10,000 coming three months before the contract was signed.
(2) Solano's company, Information Systems of Florida Inc., has been hired by the Department of Health to keep track of the "continuing education" class hours that are required of all health care licensees. The company's service is called "CE Broker."
(3) The Department of Health is strong-arming doctors, dentists, nurses and other licensees to buy an extra, "optional" subscription from CE Broker, potentially worth millions. The veiled threat is that their licenses could be hurt otherwise.
Okay, now here's some new stuff.
(4) The chief lobbyist for Solano's company turns out to be a major fundraiser for Gov. Jeb Bush and for his brother, the president.
(5) Here is a fact that did not come up in my e-mails and public-records requests. Two companies bid for the contract. The losing rival had said it would bill the private sector a fraction of Solano's estimate. The loser fought the decision, but lost on appeal.
(6) The Legislature is having second thoughts. Lawmakers are moving to repeal or change the law that led to this contract. Says state Sen. Dennis Jones, R-Treasure Island: "It's just a bad deal. We need to kill it and put it out of its misery." (Since Solano already has a signed multiyear contract, it's unclear how a repeal would affect it.)
(7) Besides a letter of protest from the Florida Medical Association, alleging doctors are being pressured to pay CE Broker, the Florida Dental Association has filed a petition with the state to overturn the rules.
What has happened here is that the state miscalculated in its rush to privatize.
It is one thing to privatize the services of people who don't have much clout - foster kids, poor folks, prisoners.
It is another thing altogether to tell doctors, dentists, nurses and other educated, generally accomplished professionals: "Say, y'all, my campaign contributor here is now going to have his paws on your license."
The doctors, dentists and nurses say that there are several problems. What if CE Broker makes a mistake? What if a professional takes a course out of state and gets only a paper certificate? Tough luck, you'll have to wait until your renewal and then mail it in and hope it gets credited - unless, of course, you buy the "optional" subscription.
"It's putting in the mind of dentists a certain level of distrust," Dr. Samuel B. Low, president-elect of the Florida Dental Association, told me. "They feel somewhat blindsided to begin with ... if you're one of the ones getting squeezed here, you don't know what's your recourse."
It has fallen to Amy Jones, director of the Division of Medical Quality Assurance, to defend this deal. She called me to do so; she also is writing letters to newspaper editors and appearing before the Legislature.
Jones chided me for not mentioning the second bidder. I told her I would have if her department had disclosed it.
Jones also was quite strong in denying that the state is pressuring license holders to buy CE Broker's services. Nevertheless, I have a letter sent out to doctors from the Department of Health that does exactly that.
In fact, the state also is telling doctors they will be exempt from having their records audited if they pay CE Broker. The state further tells them that making the "optional" payment to CE Broker will "eliminate any renewal delays for licensees." In other words, pay up if you don't want audits or license delays - if that isn't pressure, then what is?
Of the many professionals I heard from over the past week, one of my favorites was a registered nurse from Safety Harbor, Marilyn Bevan. (Marilyn, if the state now accidentally "loses" your hours, give me a call.)
"Having paid for the CE courses, it will be at least $60 to renew the license," Bevan said. "Now, another $35 to put in the pocket of a Republican Party contributor? I feel this should be further investigated." Me, too.
