The Florida Senate

Within legislative appropriations, the department may establish the indigent psychiatric medication program to purchase psychiatric medications for persons as defined in s. 394.492(5) or (6) or pursuant to s. 394.674(1), who do not reside in a state mental health treatment facility or an inpatient unit.

The department must adopt rules to administer the indigent psychiatric medication program. The rules must prescribe the clinical and financial eligibility of clients who may receive services under the indigent psychiatric medication program, the requirements that community-based mental health providers must meet to participate in the program, and the sanctions to be applied for failure to meet those requirements.

To the extent possible within existing appropriations, the department must ensure that non-Medicaid-eligible indigent individuals discharged from mental health treatment facilities continue to receive the medications which effectively stabilized their mental illness in the treatment facility, or newer medications, without substitution by a service provider unless such substitution is clinically indicated as determined by the licensed physician responsible for such individual’s psychiatric care.