Florida Senate - 2016                       CS for CS for SB 742
       
       
        
       By the Committees on Judiciary; and Community Affairs; and
       Senator Hutson
       
       590-02352-16                                           2016742c2
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to certificates of public convenience
    3         and necessity for life support or air ambulance
    4         services; amending s. 401.25, F.S.; requiring, rather
    5         than authorizing, county governing boards to adopt
    6         ordinances or amend existing ordinances that provide
    7         standards for the issuance of certificates of public
    8         convenience and necessity for basic or advanced life
    9         support services; including the recommendations of
   10         specified districts in the development of such
   11         standards; requiring counties to adopt a process for
   12         review of applications; providing an appeal process;
   13         authorizing county governing boards to adopt
   14         ordinances that provide standards for the issuance of
   15         certificates of public convenience and necessity for
   16         air ambulance services; specifying considerations for
   17         such standards; providing an exemption for certain
   18         counties; providing an effective date.
   19          
   20  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   21  
   22         Section 1. Section 401.25, Florida Statutes, is amended to
   23  read:
   24         401.25 Licensure as a basic life support or an advanced
   25  life support service; air ambulance services.—
   26         (1) Every person, firm, corporation, association, or
   27  governmental entity owning or acting as agent for the owner of
   28  any business or service which furnishes, operates, conducts,
   29  maintains, advertises, engages in, proposes to engage in, or
   30  professes to engage in the business or service of providing
   31  prehospital or interfacility advanced life support services or
   32  basic life support transportation services must be licensed as a
   33  basic life support service or an advanced life support service,
   34  whichever is applicable, before offering such service to the
   35  public. The application for such license must be submitted to
   36  the department on forms provided for this purpose. The
   37  application must include documentation that the applicant meets
   38  the appropriate requirements for a basic life support service or
   39  an advanced life support service, whichever is applicable, as
   40  specified by rule of the department.
   41         (2) The department shall issue a license for operation to
   42  any applicant who complies with the following requirements:
   43         (a) The applicant has paid the fees required by s. 401.34.
   44         (b) The ambulances, equipment, vehicles, personnel,
   45  communications systems, staffing patterns, and services of the
   46  applicant meet the requirements of this part, including the
   47  appropriate rules for either a basic life support service or an
   48  advanced life support service, whichever is applicable.
   49         (c) The applicant has furnished evidence of adequate
   50  insurance coverage for claims arising out of injury to or death
   51  of persons and damage to the property of others resulting from
   52  any cause for which the owner of such business or service would
   53  be liable. The applicant must provide insurance in such sums and
   54  under such terms as required by the department. In lieu of such
   55  insurance, the applicant may furnish a certificate of self
   56  insurance evidencing that the applicant has established an
   57  adequate self-insurance plan to cover such risks and that the
   58  plan has been approved by the Office of Insurance Regulation of
   59  the Financial Services Commission.
   60         (d) The applicant has obtained a certificate of public
   61  convenience and necessity from each county in which the
   62  applicant will operate. In issuing the certificate of public
   63  convenience and necessity, the governing body of each county
   64  shall consider the recommendations of municipalities within its
   65  jurisdiction.
   66         (3) The department may suspend or revoke a license at any
   67  time if it determines that the licensee has failed to maintain
   68  compliance with the requirements prescribed for operating a
   69  basic or advanced life support service.
   70         (4) Each license issued in accordance with this part will
   71  expire automatically 2 years after the date of issuance.
   72         (5) The requirements for renewal of any license issued
   73  under this part are the same as the requirements for original
   74  licensure that are in effect at the time of renewal.
   75         (6)(a) The governing body of a each county that is not a
   76  fiscally constrained county as defined by s. 218.67(1) shall,
   77  unless such county has an ordinance that complies with the
   78  requirements of this section on the effective date of this act,
   79  may adopt an ordinance or amend an existing ordinance to
   80  ordinances that provide reasonable standards for certificates of
   81  public convenience and necessity for basic and or advanced life
   82  support services by January 1, 2017 and air ambulance services.
   83  In developing the standards for certificates of public
   84  convenience and necessity, the governing body of each county
   85  must consider state guidelines, recommendations of the local or
   86  regional trauma agency created under chapter 395, and the
   87  recommendations of the municipalities within its jurisdiction,
   88  and recommendations of the independent special districts that
   89  provide fire rescue services within its jurisdiction. The
   90  ordinance shall provide a quasi-judicial process, or some other
   91  type of evidentiary process, for approval or denial of an
   92  application for a certificate. The ordinance shall also provide
   93  that applicants currently maintaining fire rescue infrastructure
   94  and providing first response in the county may appeal the
   95  county’s decision to the circuit court with jurisdiction over
   96  the county.
   97         (b) The governing body of a county defined as fiscally
   98  constrained pursuant to s. 218.67(1) may adopt an ordinance to
   99  provide reasonable standards for certificates of public
  100  convenience and necessity for basic and advanced life support
  101  services. In developing the standards, the governing body of
  102  each county must consider state guidelines, recommendations of
  103  the local or regional trauma agency created under chapter 395,
  104  recommendations of the municipalities within its jurisdiction,
  105  and recommendations of the independent special districts that
  106  provide fire rescue services within its jurisdiction.
  107         (c) The governing body of each county may adopt an
  108  ordinance to provide reasonable standards for certificates of
  109  public convenience and necessity for air ambulance services. In
  110  developing the standards, the governing body of each county must
  111  consider state guidelines, recommendations of the local or
  112  regional trauma agency created under chapter 395,
  113  recommendations of the municipalities within its jurisdiction,
  114  and recommendations of the independent special districts that
  115  provide fire rescue services within its jurisdiction.
  116         (7)(a) Each permitted basic life support ambulance not
  117  specifically exempted from this part, when transporting a person
  118  who is sick, injured, wounded, incapacitated, or helpless, must
  119  be occupied by at least two persons: one patient attendant who
  120  is a certified emergency medical technician, certified
  121  paramedic, or licensed physician; and one ambulance driver who
  122  meets the requirements of s. 401.281. This paragraph does not
  123  apply to interfacility transfers governed by s. 401.252(1).
  124         (b) Each permitted advanced life support ambulance not
  125  specifically exempted from this part, when transporting a person
  126  who is sick, injured, wounded, incapacitated, or helpless, must
  127  be occupied by at least two persons: one who is a certified
  128  paramedic or licensed physician; and one who is a certified
  129  emergency medical technician, certified paramedic, or licensed
  130  physician who also meets the requirements of s. 401.281 for
  131  drivers. The person with the highest medical certifications
  132  shall be in charge of patient care. This paragraph does not
  133  apply to interfacility transfers governed by s. 401.252(1).
  134         Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2016.