Florida Senate - 2012                                     SB 450
       
       
       
       By Senator Oelrich
       
       
       
       
       14-00528-12                                            2012450__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to emergency medical services;
    3         amending s. 381.0034, F.S.; deleting the requirement
    4         for emergency medical technicians and paramedics to
    5         complete an educational course on the modes of
    6         transmission, infection control procedures, clinical
    7         management, and prevention of human immunodeficiency
    8         virus and acquired immune deficiency syndrome;
    9         amending s. 401.23, F.S.; redefining the term “basic
   10         life support” for purposes of the Raymond H.
   11         Alexander, M.D., Emergency Medical Transportation
   12         Services Act; amending s. 401.24, F.S.; revising the
   13         period for review of the comprehensive state plan for
   14         emergency medical services and programs; amending s.
   15         401.27, F.S.; revising the requirements for
   16         certification or recertification as an emergency
   17         medical technician or paramedic; revising the
   18         requirements for certification for an out-of-state
   19         trained emergency medical technician or paramedic;
   20         amending s. 401.2701, F.S.; revising requirements for
   21         an institution that conducts an approved program for
   22         the education of emergency medical technicians and
   23         paramedics; revising the requirements that students
   24         must meet in order to receive a certificate of
   25         completion from an approved program; providing an
   26         effective date.
   27  
   28  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   29  
   30         Section 1. Subsection (1) of section 381.0034, Florida
   31  Statutes, is amended to read:
   32         381.0034 Requirement for instruction on HIV and AIDS.—
   33         (1) As of July 1, 1991, the Department of Health shall
   34  require each person licensed or certified under chapter 401,
   35  chapter 467, part IV of chapter 468, or chapter 483, as a
   36  condition of biennial relicensure, to complete an educational
   37  course approved by the department on the modes of transmission,
   38  infection control procedures, clinical management, and
   39  prevention of human immunodeficiency virus and acquired immune
   40  deficiency syndrome. Such course shall include information on
   41  current state Florida law on acquired immune deficiency syndrome
   42  and its impact on testing, confidentiality of test results, and
   43  treatment of patients. Each such licensee or certificateholder
   44  shall submit confirmation of having completed the said course,
   45  on a form provided by the department, when submitting fees or
   46  application for each biennial renewal.
   47         Section 2. Subsection (7) of section 401.23, Florida
   48  Statutes, is amended to read:
   49         401.23 Definitions.—As used in this part, the term:
   50         (7) “Basic life support” means treatment of medical
   51  emergencies by a qualified person through the use of techniques
   52  such as patient assessment, cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR),
   53  splinting, obstetrical assistance, bandaging, administration of
   54  oxygen, application of medical antishock trousers,
   55  administration of a subcutaneous injection using a premeasured
   56  autoinjector of epinephrine to a person suffering an
   57  anaphylactic reaction, and other techniques described in the
   58  Emergency Medical Technician Basic Training Course Curriculum or
   59  the National EMS Education Standards of the United States
   60  Department of Transportation as approved by the department. The
   61  term “basic life support” also includes other techniques that
   62  which have been approved and are performed under conditions
   63  specified by rules of the department.
   64         Section 3. Section 401.24, Florida Statutes, is amended to
   65  read:
   66         401.24 Emergency medical services state plan.—The
   67  department is responsible, at a minimum, for the improvement and
   68  regulation of basic and advanced life support programs. The
   69  department shall develop, and biennially revise every 5 years, a
   70  comprehensive state plan for basic and advanced life support
   71  services, the emergency medical services grants program, trauma
   72  centers, the injury control program, and medical disaster
   73  preparedness. The state plan shall include, but need not be
   74  limited to:
   75         (1) Emergency medical systems planning, including the
   76  prehospital and hospital phases of patient care, and injury
   77  control effort and unification of such services into a total
   78  delivery system to include air, water, and land services.
   79         (2) Requirements for the operation, coordination, and
   80  ongoing development of emergency medical services, which
   81  includes: basic life support or advanced life support vehicles,
   82  equipment, and supplies; communications; personnel; training;
   83  public education; state trauma system; injury control; and other
   84  medical care components.
   85         (3) The definition of areas of responsibility for
   86  regulating and planning the ongoing and developing delivery
   87  service requirements.
   88         Section 4. Subsections (4) and (12) of section 401.27,
   89  Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
   90         401.27 Personnel; standards and certification.—
   91         (4) An applicant for certification or recertification as an
   92  emergency medical technician or paramedic must:
   93         (a) Have completed an appropriate training course as
   94  follows:
   95         1. For an emergency medical technician, an emergency
   96  medical technician training course equivalent to the most recent
   97  National EMS Education Standards emergency medical technician
   98  basic training course of the United States Department of
   99  Transportation as approved by the department;
  100         2. For a paramedic, a paramedic training program equivalent
  101  to the most recent national standard curriculum or National EMS
  102  Education Standards paramedic course of the United States
  103  Department of Transportation as approved by the department;
  104         (b) Certify under oath that he or she is not addicted to
  105  alcohol or any controlled substance;
  106         (c) Certify under oath that he or she is free from any
  107  physical or mental defect or disease that might impair the
  108  applicant’s ability to perform his or her duties;
  109         (d) Within 2 years 1 year after course completion have
  110  passed an examination developed or required by the department;
  111         (e)1. For an emergency medical technician, hold either a
  112  current American Heart Association cardiopulmonary resuscitation
  113  course card or an American Red Cross cardiopulmonary
  114  resuscitation course card or its equivalent as defined by
  115  department rule;
  116         2. For a paramedic, hold a certificate of successful course
  117  completion in advanced cardiac life support from the American
  118  Heart Association or its equivalent as defined by department
  119  rule;
  120         (f) Submit the certification fee and the nonrefundable
  121  examination fee prescribed in s. 401.34, which examination fee
  122  will be required for each examination administered to an
  123  applicant; and
  124         (g) Submit a completed application to the department, which
  125  application documents compliance with paragraphs (a), (b), (c),
  126  (e), (f), (g), and, if applicable, (d). The application must be
  127  submitted so as to be received by the department at least 30
  128  calendar days before the next regularly scheduled examination
  129  for which the applicant desires to be scheduled.
  130         (12) An applicant for certification who is an out-of-state
  131  trained emergency medical technician or paramedic must provide
  132  proof of current emergency medical technician or paramedic
  133  certification or registration based upon successful completion
  134  of the United States Department of Transportation emergency
  135  medical technician or paramedic training curriculum or the
  136  National EMS Education Standards as approved by the department
  137  and hold a current certificate of successful course completion
  138  in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) or advanced cardiac life
  139  support for emergency medical technicians or paramedics,
  140  respectively, to be eligible for the certification examination.
  141  The applicant must successfully complete the certification
  142  examination within 1 year after the date of the receipt of his
  143  or her application by the department. After 1 year, the
  144  applicant must submit a new application, meet all eligibility
  145  requirements, and submit all fees to reestablish eligibility to
  146  take the certification examination.
  147         Section 5. Paragraph (a) of subsection (1) and subsection
  148  (5) of section 401.2701, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
  149         401.2701 Emergency medical services training programs.—
  150         (1) Any private or public institution in Florida desiring
  151  to conduct an approved program for the education of emergency
  152  medical technicians and paramedics shall:
  153         (a) Submit a completed application on a form provided by
  154  the department, which must include:
  155         1. Evidence that the institution is in compliance with all
  156  applicable requirements of the Department of Education.
  157         2. Evidence of an affiliation agreement with a hospital
  158  that has an emergency department staffed by at least one
  159  physician and one registered nurse.
  160         3. Evidence of an affiliation agreement with a current
  161  Florida-licensed emergency medical services provider that is
  162  licensed in this state. Such agreement shall include, at a
  163  minimum, a commitment by the provider to conduct the field
  164  experience portion of the education program.
  165         4. Documentation verifying faculty, including:
  166         a. A medical director who is a licensed physician meeting
  167  the applicable requirements for emergency medical services
  168  medical directors as outlined in this chapter and rules of the
  169  department. The medical director shall have the duty and
  170  responsibility of certifying that graduates have successfully
  171  completed all phases of the education program and are proficient
  172  in basic or advanced life support techniques, as applicable.
  173         b. A program director responsible for the operation,
  174  organization, periodic review, administration, development, and
  175  approval of the program.
  176         5. Documentation verifying that the curriculum:
  177         a. Meets the course guides and instructor’s lesson plans in
  178  the most recent Emergency Medical Technician-Basic National
  179  Standard Curricula or the National EMS Education Standards for
  180  emergency medical technician programs and paramedic Emergency
  181  Medical Technician-Paramedic National Standard Curricula for
  182  paramedic programs as approved by the department.
  183         b. Includes 2 hours of instruction on the trauma scorecard
  184  methodologies for assessment of adult trauma patients and
  185  pediatric trauma patients as specified by the department by
  186  rule.
  187         c. Includes 4 hours of instruction on HIV/AIDS training
  188  consistent with the requirements of chapter 381.
  189         6. Evidence of sufficient medical and educational equipment
  190  to meet emergency medical services training program needs.
  191         (5) Each approved program must notify the department within
  192  30 days after of any change in the professional or employment
  193  status of faculty. Each approved program must require its
  194  students to pass a comprehensive final written and practical
  195  examination evaluating the skills described in the current
  196  United States Department of Transportation EMT-Basic or EMT
  197  Paramedic, National Standard Curriculum or the National EMS
  198  Education Standards as approved by the department. Each approved
  199  program must issue a certificate of completion to program
  200  graduates within 14 days after of completion.
  201         Section 6. This act shall take effect July 1, 2012.