CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.House Bill 1673e1
CS/HB 1673, First Engrossed/ntc
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to teaching hospitals; creating
3 s. 766.1116, F.S.; providing legislative
4 findings and intent with respect to protection
5 through sovereign immunity of teaching
6 hospitals; providing definitions; providing for
7 a "governmental contractor," defined as the
8 Department of Health or the Agency for Health
9 Care Administration, to contract for delivery
10 by a teaching hospital of charity health
11 services and medical education services;
12 providing that a teaching hospital, while
13 acting within the scope of duties pursuant to
14 such contract, is an agent for purposes of
15 specified provisions relating to sovereign
16 immunity or waiver thereof; providing for
17 nonliability of the teaching hospital or its
18 officers, employees, or agents with respect to
19 certain actions; requiring inclusion of
20 specified provisions and guidelines in such
21 contract; requiring the governmental contractor
22 to enter into nonexclusive contracts for
23 provision of the charity health services or
24 medical education health care services and to
25 establish certain quality assurance programs;
26 requiring certain notice to patients by the
27 contracting teaching hospital with respect to
28 its agent status and applicable limitations
29 upon remedies for injury or damage; providing
30 for applicability; providing an effective date.
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CS/HB 1673, First Engrossed/ntc
1 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
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3 Section 1. Section 766.1116, Florida Statutes, is
4 created to read:
5 766.1116 Teaching hospitals; provision of charity
6 health care services and medical education health care
7 services.--
8 (1) The Legislature finds that teaching hospitals
9 provide access to health care to a significant number of
10 indigent, uninsured residents of this state, that teaching
11 hospitals provide benefits to the people of this state through
12 their medical education programs, that these benefits are at
13 significant risk because teaching hospitals fear the increased
14 risk of medical malpractice liability, and that the continued
15 viability of teaching hospitals must be protected for the
16 purposes of providing charity health care services and medical
17 education health care services. It is, therefore, the intent
18 of the Legislature to provide requirements for teaching
19 hospitals to become agents of the state and to ensure that
20 teaching hospitals satisfying these requirements are protected
21 by sovereign immunity, pursuant to this section.
22 (2) As used in this section, the term:
23 (a) "Contract" means an agreement executed in
24 compliance with this section between a teaching hospital and a
25 governmental contractor. This contract shall allow a teaching
26 hospital to deliver charity health care services and medical
27 education health care services to patients as an agent of the
28 governmental contractor.
29 (b) "Governmental contractor" means the Department of
30 Health or the Agency for Health Care Administration.
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1 (c) "Charity health care services" means health care
2 services provided to low-income persons.
3 (d) "Low-income" has the same meaning as in s.
4 766.1115(3)(e).
5 (e) "Medical education health care services" means all
6 health care services provided at a teaching hospital to a
7 patient who is under the care of a physician if such services
8 are paid, in whole or in part, by federal or state government
9 programs, and a physician performs or demonstrates a medical
10 procedure, makes a diagnosis, or prescribes or provides
11 treatment on or for a patient to whom the provisions of this
12 section is applicable. Incidental contact by a physician with
13 a patient at a teaching hospital shall not be considered the
14 provision of medical education health care services.
15 (f) "Physician" means a physician who is:
16 1. Employed by the teaching hospital, or by a medical
17 school affiliated with the teaching hospital, as a medical
18 intern, resident, or fellow;
19 2. A full-time member of the medical education staff
20 of the teaching hospital; or
21 3. Employed by or under contract with, or is a member
22 of the faculty of a medical school affiliated with, the
23 teaching hospital when the physician is supervising or
24 instructing a medical resident or demonstrating a medical
25 procedure to a medical resident, at the teaching hospital.
26 (g) "Teaching hospital" has the same meaning as in s.
27 408.07(49).
28 (3)(a) A teaching hospital that executes a contract
29 with a governmental contractor to deliver charity health care
30 services and medical education services as an agent of the
31 governmental contractor is an agent for purposes of s.
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CS/HB 1673, First Engrossed/ntc
1 768.28(9), while acting within the scope of duties pursuant to
2 the contract, if the contract complies with the requirements
3 of this section. Neither a teaching hospital under contract
4 with a governmental contractor nor the officers, employees, or
5 agents of the teaching hospital may be named as a defendant in
6 any action arising out of charity health care services or
7 medical education health care services which are provided on
8 or after the effective date of this section, pursuant to
9 contracts entered under this section.
10 (b) The contract shall:
11 1. Contain provisions that satisfy the requirements of
12 s. 766.1115(4)(a), (b), (c), (e), and (g);
13 2. Require that the teaching hospital shall defend
14 against, on behalf of the governmental contractor, and shall
15 be responsible for its own litigation costs and attorney's
16 fees for, any malpractice litigation arising out of health
17 care services delivered pursuant to this section;
18 3. Provide for the indemnification of the state by the
19 teaching hospital for any liabilities incurred up to the
20 limits established in s. 768.28; and
21 4. Specify the level of charity care the teaching
22 hospital must provide.
23 (4) A governmental contractor shall enter into
24 nonexclusive contracts with teaching hospitals for the
25 provision of charity health care services and medical
26 education health care service under which a teaching hospital
27 shall be an agent of the state. Any such contract shall
28 prescribe the scope of and guidelines for the charity health
29 care services and medical education health care services to be
30 provided pursuant to the contract. The governmental contractor
31 shall establish a quality assurance program to monitor
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1 services delivered under any contract between the governmental
2 contractor and the teaching hospital pursuant to this section.
3 (5) For this section to apply, a patient shall be
4 provided separate written conspicuous notice by the teaching
5 hospital, and shall acknowledge receipt of this notice in
6 writing, unless impractical by reason of an emergency, either
7 personally or through another person authorized to give
8 consent for him or her, that he or she will receive care
9 provided by the teaching hospital as an agent of the state for
10 the provision of charity health care services and medical
11 education health care services and that the exclusive remedy
12 for any liability, if any, that may arise from that care is
13 limited as provided by s. 768.28, Florida Statutes, to not
14 more than $100,000 per person, or $200,000 for all claims
15 arising out of the same incident, unless the Legislature
16 enacts a claim bill pertaining to the patient.
17 (6) This section applies to incidents occurring on or
18 after the effective date of this section.
19 Section 2. This act shall take effect upon becoming a
20 law.
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