| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to certificates of need; amending s. |
| 3 | 408.0361, F.S.; revising provisions applicable to |
| 4 | hospitals seeking certification as Level I programs; |
| 5 | providing criteria for certification to provide certain |
| 6 | Level I cardiology services; providing an effective date. |
| 7 |
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| 8 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 9 |
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| 10 | Section 1. Subsections (4), (5), and (6) of section |
| 11 | 408.0361, Florida Statutes, are renumbered as subsections (5), |
| 12 | (6), and (7), respectively, and a new subsection (4) is added to |
| 13 | that section to read: |
| 14 | 408.0361 Cardiology services and burn unit licensure.-- |
| 15 | (4) In order to ensure continuity of available services, |
| 16 | the holder of a certificate of need for a newly licensed |
| 17 | hospital that meets the requirements of this subsection may |
| 18 | apply for and shall be granted Level I program status regardless |
| 19 | of whether rules relating to Level I programs have been adopted. |
| 20 | To qualify for a Level I program under this subsection, a |
| 21 | hospital seeking a Level I program must be a newly licensed |
| 22 | hospital established pursuant to a certificate of need in a |
| 23 | physical location previously licensed and operated as a |
| 24 | hospital, the former hospital must have provided a minimum of |
| 25 | 300 adult inpatient and outpatient diagnostic cardiac |
| 26 | catheterizations for the most recent 12-month period as reported |
| 27 | to the agency, and the newly licensed hospital must have a |
| 28 | formalized, written transfer agreement with a hospital that has |
| 29 | a Level II program, including written transport protocols to |
| 30 | ensure safe and efficient transfer of a patient within 60 |
| 31 | minutes. A hospital meeting the requirements of this subsection |
| 32 | may apply for certification of Level I program status before |
| 33 | taking possession of the physical location of the former |
| 34 | hospital, and the effective date of Level I program status shall |
| 35 | be concurrent with the effective date of the newly issued |
| 36 | hospital license. |
| 37 | Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2007. |