May 4, 2017

Contact: Jaryn Emhof [email protected]

Statement from FL Rep. Daniel Webster on passage of the American Health Care Act

Washington, DC - Today, Florida Representative Daniel Webster (R-Clermont) released the following statement regarding his vote on H.R. 1628, the American Health Care Act.

"Today, I voted to end the nightmare that has been the [un]Affordable Care Act (ACA) and to provide Americans with the care they need, at a price they can afford, from the doctor they choose. For six years, I have been an advocate for repealing the failed Obamacare and replacing it with real healthcare reform. ACA has is collapsing across the country - currently 4.7 million people are without an insurer. This failed policy is raising costs for patients and forcing insurers out of the marketplace, which leaves patients and families with nowhere to go.

"I have been very concerned about Florida's Medicaid-funded nursing home beds. These are critical to the access some of our senior population has to our nursing homes.

"President Trump, Vice President Pence, Center for Medicaid Services and House leadership have committed to find a solution to ensure Florida is equipped to serve one of our most vulnerable. With these assurances and Chairman Walden's comments that are now in the official record, I voted for the bill today."

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Background:

Florida is a very efficient state when it comes to providing Medicaid services. We have a million more Medicaid enrollees than New York and yet half the funding. We are also among the fastest growing states in the nation. Many seniors depend on Medicaid-funded nursing home beds when their Medicare coverage runs out. Our high senior population is exploding as more baby boomers reach senior age. The formula expressed in the bill calculates a per capita cost multiplied by the number of eligible Medicaid recipients for the previous year. The normal increase in cost of services coupled with being one of the fastest growing states in the country, puts Florida particularly at risk for exceeding the costs established under the bill. This would trigger a claw-back provision that places a huge burden on the state.

More about recent healthcare bills passed by the House:

* Lowers administrative costs for small businesses who seek to provide health insurance for their employees.

* Allows small business owners to join association health plans and thus lower their and their employees' health care costs.

* Maintains protections for those with pre-existing conditions and prohibition against insurers turning away patients when they renew their plans simply because they may be sick. More information on pre-existing conditions policy is at: https://webster.house.gov/macarthur-amendment-mvf.

* Allows dependents up to age 26 to stay on their parent's plan.

* Eliminates the individual and employer mandate penalties and medical device tax

* Repeals Obamacare subsidies this year

* Reduces qualifying income threshold from 10 percent to 5.8% which is lower than the pre-Obamacare level.

* Doubles the amount of tax-free money individuals can contribute to their Health Savings Accounts (HSAs).

* Empowers states to convert their Medicaid program to a block grant and establish work-requirements.

* Subjects health insurance issuers to same laws which prohibit unfair trade practices, including laws that prohibit price fixing, collusion or market allocations to the detriment of consumers.

A Broward County husband and wife are accused of running a yearslong life insurance fraud scheme that investigators say used fake employment records, false policy paperwork, and people who had not agreed to be enrolled.

Phillip Salvatore Nunzio Jr., 59, and Christine Ann Nunzio, 56, of Hollywood, were arrested Wednesday, according to Local 10 News.

Jail records reviewed by the station show both face more than 20 charges, including racketeering, money laundering, insurance fraud, and criminal use of personal identification information.

The case is based on a complaint affidavit from the Florida Department of Financial Services’ Criminal Investigations Division. Investigators said the alleged scheme ran from at least 2017 through 2023 and centered on fraudulently obtaining life insurance proceeds.

Investigators Say Fake Jobs Were Used To Create Coverage

COUPLE ARRESTED: A husband and wife from Broward County were arrested Wednesday in connection with what investigators described as a yearslong insurance fraud scheme. https://t.co/duncLkKHKi

— WPLG Local 10 News (@WPLGLocal10) June 25, 2026

According to the affidavit, the couple allegedly falsified employment records, insurance enrollment documents, beneficiary designations, and claim forms.

The submissions were made primarily through group life insurance policies issued by Mutual of Omaha and Lincoln Financial Group, investigators said.

The affidavit says Christine Nunzio used business entities under her control, including C&C Construction and Design Group Inc., to make it appear that people had legitimate employment relationships with those companies.

That alleged paper trail mattered because the policies at the center of the case were group life policies. Investigators said the fake employment records helped enroll non-consenting people into the plans.

Death Claims Were Paid Into Accounts They Controlled

Authorities said Christine Nunzio named either herself or her husband as the beneficiary of the policies and directed claim proceeds into accounts she controlled.

One claim was submitted after the death of a person whose name was redacted in the affidavit, Local 10 reported. That claim was paid in the amount of $100,284.93.

Investigators said the money was deposited into a joint account controlled by the Nunzios.

Authorities also identified two additional life insurance claims totaling $110,000 and $63,700. Those proceeds were also deposited into accounts controlled by the couple, according to the affidavit.

After the payments arrived, investigators said the accounts showed what they described as extensive rapid fund transfers.

A Work Laptop Became Key Evidence

Investigators said a forensic review of Christine Nunzio’s work laptop found life insurance claim forms, payroll spreadsheets, job descriptions, and correspondence tied to the allegedly fraudulent claims.

The affidavit also states that deleted files and email attachments helped confirm her role in preparing and submitting claim documentation.

That computer evidence appears to be central to how investigators say the paperwork was created and managed. The alleged scheme depended on documents that made the insurance enrollments, employment relationships, beneficiaries, and claims appear legitimate.

Financial records also showed prior knowledge of financial distress, including loan defaults exceeding $145,000, according to investigators.

As of Thursday, Phillip and Christine Nunzio were being held without bond at the Broward County Main Jail, Local 10 reported.