Senate Bill 0290c1
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
Florida Senate - 1998 CS for SB 290
By the Committee on Health Care and Senator Klein
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1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to emergency medical services;
3 creating s. 401.272, F.S., providing for
4 paramedics and emergency medical technicians to
5 provide health promotion and wellness
6 activities and blood pressure screenings;
7 providing for paramedics to administer
8 immunizations and requiring the verification
9 and documentation of their qualifications to do
10 so; providing conditions to the provision of
11 such community health care; providing for
12 rulemaking; providing an effective date.
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14 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
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16 Section 1. Section 401.272, Florida Statutes, is
17 created to read:
18 401.272 Emergency medical services community health
19 care.--
20 (1) The purpose of this section is to encourage more
21 effective utilization of the skills of emergency medical
22 technicians and paramedics by enabling them to perform, in
23 partnership with local county health departments, specific
24 additional health care tasks that are consistent with the
25 public health and welfare.
26 (2) Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the
27 contrary:
28 (a) Paramedics or emergency medical technicians may
29 perform health promotion and wellness activities and blood
30 pressure screenings in a nonemergency environment, within the
31 scope of their training, and under the direction of a medical
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Florida Senate - 1998 CS for SB 290
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1 director. As used in this paragraph, the term "health
2 promotion and wellness" means the provision of public health
3 programs pertaining to the prevention of illness and injury.
4 (b) Paramedics may administer immunizations in a
5 nonemergency environment, within the scope of their training,
6 and under the direction of a medical director. There must be a
7 written agreement between the paramedic's medical director and
8 the county health department located in each county in which
9 the paramedic administers immunizations. This agreement must
10 establish the protocols, policies, and procedures under which
11 the paramedic must operate.
12 (3) Each medical director under whose direction a
13 paramedic administers immunizations must verify and document
14 that the paramedic has received sufficient training and
15 experience to administer immunizations. The verification must
16 be documented on forms developed by the department, and the
17 completed forms must be maintained at the service location of
18 the licensee and made available to the department upon
19 request.
20 (4) The department may adopt and enforce all rules
21 necessary to enforce the provisions relating to a paramedic's
22 administration of immunizations and the performance of health
23 promotion and wellness activities and blood pressure
24 screenings by a paramedic or emergency medical technician in a
25 nonemergency environment.
26 Section 2. Paragraph (g) of subsection (1) of section
27 401.411, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
28 401.411 Disciplinary action; penalties.--
29 (1) The department may deny, suspend, or revoke a
30 license, certificate, or permit or may reprimand or fine any
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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
Florida Senate - 1998 CS for SB 290
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1 licensee, certificateholder, or other person operating under
2 this part for any of the following grounds:
3 (g) Unprofessional conduct, including, but not limited
4 to, any departure from or failure to conform to the minimal
5 prevailing standards of acceptable practice as an emergency
6 medical technician or paramedic, including undertaking
7 activities that the emergency medical technician or paramedic
8 is not qualified by training or experience to perform.
9 Section 3. This act shall take effect upon becoming a
10 law.
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12 STATEMENT OF SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES CONTAINED IN
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
13 Senate Bill 290
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15 The committee substitute revises the circumstances under which
an emergency medical technician or paramedic may perform
16 certain activities in a nonemergency environment under the
direction of an emergency medical service's medical director.
17 The committee substitute allows an emergency medical
technician or paramedic to perform blood pressure screenings
18 and health promotion and wellness activities in a nonemergency
environment under the direction of a medical director and
19 allows a paramedic to administer immunizations pursuant to
protocol. The committee substitute defines health promotion
20 and wellness and gives the Department of Health rulemaking
authority. The committee substitute no longer imposes
21 liability on the medical director for any acts performed by a
paramedic or emergency medical technician in rendering
22 nonemergency care.
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