We saw a lot of new things in 2020, including an election that was performed in a different way. We should all thank our local election officials for pulling this massive undertaking off so successfully. In Florida, not much has changed in Tallahassee as we head into a new legislative session. Republicans hold the majority in both state legislative chambers and in the Governor’s office. By the time you are reading this, committee weeks in Tallahassee will be underway. However, this next session will start a new era of leadership in Tallahassee, with the new Speaker of the House, Chris Sprowls, and a likely new Senate President in Wilton Simpson. We will also likely see a major focus on budgetary changes given the drastic changes to the Florida economy that have occurred due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In December, FCEP hosted a virtual Insurance Summit with multiple legislators participating. I would like to thank Toni Large and Dr. Steve Kailes for their hard work and representing us so well. They illustrated the problems we have all been seeing with insurers under the balance billing laws in Florida. We hope that this will jumpstart a movement to adjust the current law to make participating in arbitration mandatory, not voluntary.

COVID-19 has led to a great deal of changes in Tallahassee, just as it has in the rest of society. For EM Days 2021, we will be meeting with legislators virtually instead of in-person to advocate for issues important to our members. I encourage everyone to give to FCEP’s political action committees (PACs) so that we can continue being your representatives to our local leaders, during Session and otherwise. I also encourage all of you to join our discussions on DocMatter and let us know your thoughts on important issues related to Government Affairs.

Thank you all for your time, and I wish a happy 2021 to everyone. Reach out any time if you have any questions or concerns. ■