Senate Bill sb1250c2
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Florida Senate - 2002 CS for CS for SB 1250
By the Committees on Health, Aging and Long-Term Care;
Education; and Senator Miller
317-2290-02
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to public school health care
3 services; creating s. 381.00593, F.S.; creating
4 a public school volunteer health care
5 practitioner program; providing a short title;
6 providing purpose; providing a definition;
7 providing for waiver of biennial active license
8 renewal fees and fulfillment of continuing
9 education hours for specified health care
10 practitioners who provide their services,
11 without compensation, in the public schools;
12 providing program and eligibility requirements;
13 providing immunity from liability and workers'
14 compensation protection; providing for payment
15 of any resulting increase in liability
16 insurance premiums; providing administrative
17 responsibilities; providing rulemaking
18 authority; providing for implementation;
19 providing an effective date.
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21 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
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23 Section 1. Section 381.00593, Florida Statutes, is
24 created to read:
25 381.00593 Public school volunteer health care
26 practitioner program.--
27 (1) This section may be cited as the "Public School
28 Volunteer Health Care Practitioner Act."
29 (2) The purpose of this section is to establish a
30 public school volunteer health care practitioner program with
31 incentives and coordinate the program with the "School Health
1
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Florida Senate - 2002 CS for CS for SB 1250
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1 Services Act," pursuant to s. 381.0056, to encourage health
2 care practitioners to provide their services, without
3 compensation, in the public schools, and such program is
4 intended to complement other programs designed to provide
5 health services or increase the level of health care in the
6 public schools.
7 (3) For purposes of this section, the term "health
8 care practitioner" means a physician licensed under chapter
9 458; an osteopathic physician licensed under chapter 459; a
10 physician assistant licensed under chapter 458 or chapter 459;
11 a chiropractic physician licensed under chapter 460; a
12 podiatric physician licensed under chapter 461; a practitioner
13 of optometry licensed under chapter 463; an advanced
14 registered nurse practitioner, registered nurse, or licensed
15 practical nurse licensed under chapter 464; a pharmacist
16 licensed under chapter 465; a dentist or dental hygienist
17 licensed under chapter 466; a midwife practitioner licensed
18 under chapter 467; a speech-language pathologist and
19 audiologist licensed under chapter 468, part I; or a physical
20 therapist licensed under chapter 486.
21 (4)(a) Notwithstanding any provision of chapter 458;
22 chapter 459; chapter 460; chapter 461; chapter 463; chapter
23 464; chapter 465; chapter 466; chapter 467; chapter 468, part
24 I; and chapter 486 to the contrary, any health care
25 practitioner who participates in the program established in
26 this section and thereby agrees to provide his or her
27 services, without compensation, in a public school for at
28 least 80 hours a year for each school year during the biennial
29 licensure period, or, if the health care practitioner is
30 retired, for at least 400 hours a year for each school year
31 during the licensure period upon providing sufficient proof
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Florida Senate - 2002 CS for CS for SB 1250
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1 from the applicable school district that the health care
2 practitioner has completed such hours at the time of licensure
3 renewal and under procedures specified by the Department of
4 Health, shall be eligible for the following:
5 1. The biennial license renewal fee for an active
6 license is waived; and
7 2. A maximum of 25 percent of the continuing education
8 hours required for license renewal may be fulfilled by
9 participating in this program, pursuant to s. 456.013(9).
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11 The school district may establish a schedule for health care
12 practitioners who participate in the program.
13 (b) A health care practitioner must complete all forms
14 and procedures for participation in the program prior to the
15 applicable license renewal date.
16 (5) To participate in the program, a health care
17 practitioner must:
18 (a) Have a valid, active license to practice his or
19 her profession in this state.
20 (b) Submit fingerprints and have a background
21 screening in accordance with the requirements of s. 381.0059,
22 unless already provided and completed for practitioner
23 licensing, profiling, or credentialing purposes.
24 (6) The school district, through its self-insurance
25 program, shall bear the cost of any increase in premiums for
26 liability protection for health care practitioners
27 participating in the program other than those employed by the
28 school or school district.
29 (7)(a) The Department of Health shall have the
30 responsibility to supervise the public school volunteer health
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Florida Senate - 2002 CS for CS for SB 1250
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1 care practitioner program and perform periodic program reviews
2 as provided in s. 381.0056(4).
3 (b) The Department of Health, in cooperation with the
4 Department of Education, shall publicize the availability of
5 the program and its benefits.
6 (8) The Department of Health, in cooperation with the
7 Department of Education, may adopt rules necessary to
8 implement this section. The rules shall include the forms to
9 be completed and procedures to be followed by applicants and
10 school personnel under the program.
11 Section 2. Implementation of the public school
12 volunteer health care practitioner program under section
13 381.00593, Florida Statutes, as created by this act, shall be
14 according to the following schedule:
15 (1) The forms and procedures required by section
16 381.00593(8), Florida Statutes, must be completed and
17 distributed to the school districts by November 30, 2002.
18 (2) Each school district must make the application
19 forms and any other materials required by section
20 381.00593(8), Florida Statutes, available to all public
21 schools in the district within 1 month after the forms and
22 procedures are completed and distributed to the school
23 district.
24 (3) Publication of the program, as required by section
25 381.00593(7)(b), Florida Statutes, must begin within 1 month
26 after the forms and procedures are completed and distributed
27 to the school district.
28 Section 3. This act shall take effect upon becoming a
29 law.
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1 STATEMENT OF SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES CONTAINED IN
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
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4 The bill requires a health care practitioner who has agreed to
volunteer in public schools, without compensation, to show
5 proof of such service at the time of his or her license
renewal under procedures specified by the Department of Health
6 in order to receive the waiver for the fees and continuing
education hours.
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