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Florida GOP lawmakers may make it easier for Desantis to run for President while Governor
Gov. Ron DeSantis hasn't said he's running for president, but Florida Republican legislative leaders are considering making it easier for him to do so anyway. Gathered in Tallahassee on Tuesday, these leaders said they are open to revising a Florida law requiring the governor to resign his position if he runs for president.
Current Florida law requires state or local officials seeking federal office to resign at least 10 days before qualifying for the federal position if the two terms would overlap. The state Legislature’s top Republicans, House Speaker Paul Renner and Senate President Kathleen Passidomo, expressed their support for repealing the law in speaking with reporters, Tuesday after incumbent and freshman legislators were officially sworn into office.
Dates set for December Special Session on property insurance, Hurricane Ian property tax relief
After being formally sworn in Tuesday, legislative leaders announced their first substantive Session will come Dec. 12-16.
The formal call of the Special Session laying out what issues will be discussed and addressed hasn’t been issued, but Gov. Ron DeSantis said he wants to provide property tax cuts to victims of Hurricane Ian and pass legislation to bolster the beleaguered property insurance industry.
Medicaid and CHIP Eligibility/Enrollment in Florida and the End of the Public Health Emergency
In January 2020, the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) declared a COVID-19 public health emergency (PHE), which has recently been extended to January 11, 2023. During this time, Floridians enrolled in Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) have been able to keep their coverage without having to re-enroll, a rule referred to as “continuous coverage.”
As of October 2022, there were over 5.5 million people enrolled in Medicaid in Florida. None of these newly enrolled individuals have had to go through the process of re-enrolling: this is concerning, as they might not know to submit renewals once the PHE ends. Additionally, people who have been enrolled in Medicaid since before the pandemic may have moved or not updated their contact or financial information, which could cause them to lose coverage — even though they remain eligible. This “churn” has the potential to affect the millions of Floridians who rely on Medicaid for their health care.
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