16 Fla. L. Weekly Supp. 108a
Insurance — Personal injury protection — Coverage — Medical expenses — Lawfully rendered treatment — Treatment is not rendered unlawful by failure to obtain county occupational license
DADE INJURY REHABILITATION CENTER, a Florida Corporation (assignee of Valladares, Jennifer 2), Plaintiff, v. UNITED AUTOMOBILE INSURANCE COMPANY, Defendant. County Court, 11th Judicial Circuit in and for Miami-Dade County. Case No. 07-15485 CC 23 (02). June 20, 2008. Caryn Canner Schwartz, Judge. Counsel: J.D. Underwood, The Law Office of Russel Lazega, P.A., North Miami, for Plaintiff. Miguel Chamorro, Pinkert Law Firm, P.A., Miami, for Defendant.
ORDER DENYING DEFENDANT’S MOTION FOR FINAL SUMMARY JUDGMENT
(RE: NO OCCUPATIONAL LICENSE)
THIS CAUSE came before the Court on hearing on Defendant’s Motion for Final Summary Judgment and the Court having reviewed the Motion and entire Court file; reviewed the relevant legal authorities; heard argument, and been sufficiently advised in the premises the Court finds as follows:
Background:This is a multi-count P.I.P. case. Defendant has alleged that Plaintiff’s treating physician was without the requisite Miami-Dade County Occupational License at the time the treatments were being rendered by Plaintiff’s facility. As such, Defendant claims that treatment billed by Plaintiff was unlawful and therefore un-payable by Defendant. Plaintiff contends that Defendant’s reliance on State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co. v. West Dixie Rehab. & Medical Center, Inc., 11 Fla. L. Weekly Supp. 788b (Dade Circuit Appellate 2004) is misplaced as this case interpreted the 2001 version of the P.I.P. statute and that the 2003 version of the P.I.P. statute which applies to the case at bar provides a definition for lawful treatment which would make a municipality’s ordinances inapplicable when reviewing charges for treatment under the P.I.P. statute to determine if they were lawful.
Conclusions of Law: The Plaintiff is correct that the provisions of the Florida Statutes governing P.I.P. were amended in 2003 to include a definition of lawful which would make a municipality’s ordinances inapplicable to a determination of whether a facility’s services were lawfully rendered for purposes of P.I.P. The 2003 version of Florida Statutes Section 627.732 defines “lawful” and “lawfully” as “in substantial compliance with all relevant applicable criminal, civil, and administrative requirements of state and federal law related to the provision of medical services or treatment.” As a matter of law, it is inapplicable to apply the failure of a medical provider to obtain a county occupational license for medical billing submitted under the P.I.P. statute to a determination of whether such services were lawful as the statute only requires compliance with state and federal law. See William A. Hall, D.C. a/a/o Jimmy Sosa v. Mercury Insurance Company of Florida, 15 Fla. L. Weekly Supp. 93a (Miami-Dade County Court 2007).
The court finds no county or municipality occupational license was required by Plaintiff in order for their medical billing in this case to be considered lawful by the Defendant.
Accordingly, it is hereby
ORDERED AND ADJUDGED the Defendant’s Motion for Final Summary Judgment is DENIED. The Court reserves jurisdiction to award attorney’s fees and costs relative to the denial of this motion.
