Florida Governor Charlie Crist signed [removed]Florida Senate Bill 1986[/removed] into law last month. According to the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM), this omnibus bill amended the Patient Self-Referral Act of 1992.
The 1992 act addressed the concern associated with physicians referring patients to specific health care services that might serve a financial interest of the physician. This included sleep testing referrals, according to the AASM.
The 1992 act reads, “It is recognized by the Legislature that the referral of a patient by a health care provider to a provider of health care services in which the referring health care provider has an investment interest represents a potential conflict of interest.”
“The recently enacted law amends the [1992] Act to allow a physician to refer a patient for a sleep testing procedure,” wrote the AASM in an announcement.
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