Florida Senate - 2009 SB 330
By Senator Wilson
33-00065-09 2009330__
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to school health services; creating s.
3 381.0058, F.S., relating to public-private
4 partnerships for the provision of school nurse
5 services; providing legislative intent and purpose;
6 providing duties of the Department of Health and the
7 Department of Education; providing a process for a
8 community to submit a proposal to receive matching
9 funds; providing for the scope of services to be
10 provided; providing review and selection criteria;
11 providing legislative intent relating to funding the
12 act; providing an appropriation; providing an
13 effective date.
14
15 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
16
17 Section 1. This act may be cited as the “One School, One
18 Nurse Act.”
19 Section 2. Section 381.0058, Florida Statutes, is created
20 to read:
21 381.0058 Matching funds for school nurse services; public
22 private partnerships.—
23 (1) It is the intent of the Legislature that matching
24 funds, in addition to those provided under s. 381.0056 for the
25 School Health Services Act and s. 381.0057 for school health
26 services funding, be provided in those communities where
27 interest in school health services is evidenced by the
28 participation of public or private entities in the funding or
29 delivery of school nurse services. The purpose of this funding
30 is to encourage the development of those programs that offer the
31 greatest potential for promoting the health of students,
32 increasing the availability of and access to nurses in the
33 school setting, and fostering greater community participation in
34 the delivery of school nurse services. Matching funds shall be
35 available specifically for implementing the programs described
36 in ss. 381.0056, 381.0057, and 402.3026 which are designed to
37 meet the particular needs of the community. Further, it is the
38 intent of the Legislature that tobacco-settlement revenue be
39 used to pay for health and human services for children.
40 (2) The State Surgeon General, or his or her designee, in
41 cooperation with the Commissioner of Education, or his or her
42 designee, shall publicize the availability of matching funds for
43 public and private entities committed to enhancing the
44 availability of school nurse services, as reflected in formal
45 agreements that are part of the local school health services
46 plan.
47 (3) The State Surgeon General, or his or her designees, in
48 cooperation with the Commissioner of Education, or his or her
49 designees, in equal representation, shall form a committee to
50 determine the eligibility of sites to receive matching funds.
51 (4) Any community that seeks to receive state matching
52 funds under this section must submit a proposal to the committee
53 established in subsection (3). The proposal must state the goals
54 of the program, provide specific plans for enhancing local
55 resources available for school nurse services, and describe all
56 of the health services to be made available to students from
57 matching funds provided under this section. A county health
58 department or school district that receives matching funds may
59 not supplant more than 50 percent of the current local
60 contributions to school health services funding, as documented
61 in the local school health services plan.
62 (5) In addition to the merits of a proposal, the award of
63 matching funds must be based on those proposals from sites that
64 include county health departments and school districts that most
65 closely meet the following criteria:
66 (a) Have evidence of a comprehensive inservice staff
67 development plan.
68 (b) Have evidence of a cooperative working relationship
69 between the county health department and the school district,
70 and have community as well as parental support.
71 (c) Have a high percentage of subsidized school lunches.
72 (d) Have a high incidence of medically underserved high
73 risk children, low-birthweight babies, infant mortality, or
74 teenage pregnancy.
75 (e) Have a high incidence of children who have chronic
76 health conditions or high-risk behavioral problems.
77 (f) Have documented in the local school health services
78 plan a commitment from community entities to fund or provide
79 other direct resources for the enhanced availability of school
80 health services.
81 (g) Have a plan to ensure billing for Medicaid funding for
82 services rendered under the certified school match program or
83 the county health department certified match program as
84 specified in s. 409.9122.
85 Although these criteria are part of the review process for
86 proposals, they are not to be construed as the sole factors to
87 be considered in the proposal-review process. A site's ability
88 to address, and interest in addressing, locally identified needs
89 and priorities must also be considered. In addition, receipt of
90 matching funds is not intended to diminish a site's eligibility
91 for base funding for school health services.
92 Section 3. It is the intent of the Legislature that
93 sufficient resources be made available to fund a nurse in every
94 public school in the state as provided in this act. The
95 Legislature recognizes that extensive resources will be
96 necessary to achieve this intent, and that a portion of these
97 resources can be found from a variety of existing resources. The
98 Legislature recognizes that existing funding for basic and
99 comprehensive school health services and full-service schools,
100 as created under ss. 381.0056 and 381.0057, Florida Statutes,
101 can be used as partial funding. The Legislature further
102 recognizes that funding earned by local school districts and
103 county health departments from the Agency for Health Care
104 Administration for the delivery of services to Medicaid-eligible
105 students can also be used as partial funding. Finally, the
106 Legislature recognizes that local funds currently being used for
107 school health services are now eligible for matching funds under
108 the school nurse services provided through public-private
109 partnerships as created by this act. It is the intent of the
110 Legislature that the remainder of resources necessary for
111 placing a nurse in every school be derived from the state's
112 tobacco-settlement revenue.
113 Section 4. The sum of $75,000 is appropriated from the
114 General Revenue Fund to the Department of Health for the purpose
115 of convening a school health summit as recommended by Senate
116 Interim Project Report 98-30, September 1998.
117 Section 5. This act shall take effect July 1, 2009.