Florida Senate - 2018 CS for SB 326
By the Committee on Military and Veterans Affairs, Space, and
Domestic Security; and Senator Young
583-01510-18 2018326c1
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to services for veterans and their
3 families; creating s. 394.9087, F.S.; requiring that
4 the Department of Children and Families establish the
5 Florida Veterans’ Care Coordination Program to provide
6 veterans and their families with behavioral health
7 care referral and care coordination services;
8 requiring that the department contract with managing
9 entities to enter into agreements with Florida 211
10 Network participants for such services; providing
11 program goals; providing for the statewide delivery of
12 specified services by program teams; requiring Florida
13 211 Network participants to collect certain data on
14 the implementation of the program and submit the data
15 to the department; requiring the department to submit
16 a report on the program’s implementation to the
17 Governor and Legislature by a specified date;
18 requiring a minimum percentage of funds annually
19 appropriated for the administration of the program to
20 be used for the promotion and advertising of the
21 program; requiring the department to use public
22 service announcements; providing an appropriation;
23 providing an effective date.
24
25 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
26
27 Section 1. Section 394.9087, Florida Statutes, is created
28 to read:
29 394.9087 Florida Veterans’ Care Coordination Program.—
30 (1) As used in this section, the term “veteran” means a
31 wartime veteran as defined in s. 1.01(14).
32 (2) The Department of Children and Families, in
33 consultation with the Florida Alliance of Information and
34 Referral Services, shall establish the Florida Veterans’ Care
35 Coordination Program. The department shall contract with
36 managing entities, as defined in s. 394.9082(2), to enter into
37 agreements with Florida 211 Network participants to provide
38 veterans and their families in this state with dedicated
39 behavioral health care referral services, especially mental
40 health and substance abuse services. The department shall model
41 the program after the proof-of-concept pilot program established
42 in Hillsborough, Pasco, Pinellas, Polk, and Manatee Counties in
43 2014 by the Crisis Center of Tampa Bay and the Florida
44 Department of Veterans’ Affairs.
45 (3) The goals of the program are to:
46 (a) Prevent suicides by veterans.
47 (b) Increase the use of United States Department of
48 Veterans Affairs programs and services by veterans.
49 (c) Increase the number of veterans who use other available
50 community-based programs and services.
51 (4) The program must be available statewide. Program
52 services must be provided by program teams operated by Florida
53 211 Network participants, as authorized by s. 408.918. A Florida
54 211 Network participant may provide services in more than one
55 managing entity’s geographic area under a single contract.
56 (5) The program teams shall provide referral and care
57 coordination services to veterans and their families and expand
58 the existing Florida 211 Network to include the optimal range of
59 veterans’ service organizations and programs. Program services
60 shall be provided by individuals who are veterans, as defined in
61 s. 1.01(14), and must include:
62 (a) Telephonic peer support, crisis intervention, and
63 referral services. Crisis intervention and referral services
64 shall be available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
65 (b) Treatment coordination, including coordination of
66 followup care.
67 (c) Suicide-risk assessment.
68 (d) Promotion of the safety and wellness of veterans and
69 their families, including continuous support.
70 (e) Coordination of resources to facilitate acceptance,
71 enrollment, and attendance of veterans and their families in
72 United States Department of Veterans Affairs programs and
73 services and other available community-based programs and
74 services.
75 (f) Immediate needs assessments, including safety planning
76 and support.
77 (g) Data analysis to improve the efficiency of referral and
78 care coordination services to veterans and their families.
79 (6) To enhance program services, program teams shall:
80 (a) Track the number of requests from callers who are
81 veterans or their family members.
82 (b) Follow up with callers or their family members to
83 determine whether they have acted on the referrals or received
84 the assistance needed, and if additional referral or advocacy is
85 needed.
86 (c) Develop and implement communication strategies, such as
87 media promotions, public service announcements, print and
88 Internet articles, and community presentations, to inform
89 veterans and their families about available United States
90 Department of Veterans Affairs programs and services and other
91 available community-based programs and services.
92 (d) Document all calls and capture all necessary data to
93 improve outreach to veterans and their families and report such
94 data to the managing entity.
95 (7) Florida 211 Network participants shall collect and
96 submit data on the implementation of the program to the
97 department in the format prescribed by the department. The
98 department shall use such data to prepare a report for submittal
99 to the Governor, the President of the Senate, and the Speaker of
100 the House of Representatives by December 15, 2019. The report
101 must include:
102 (a) The number of calls received.
103 (b) Demographic information for each caller, including, but
104 not limited to, the caller’s military affiliation, the caller’s
105 veteran status, and if the caller is receiving services through
106 United States Department of Veterans Affairs programs and
107 services or other available community-based programs and
108 services.
109 (c) The nature of each call, including, but not limited to,
110 the concerns prompting the call and the services requested.
111 (d) The outcome of each call, including, but not limited
112 to, the service referrals made and the organizations to which
113 the caller was referred.
114 (e) Services received as a result of each call.
115 (f) Followup by the program team, including, but not
116 limited to, the percentage of calls receiving followup and the
117 amount of time between initial contact and followup.
118 (g) The program’s impact on each caller’s quality of life
119 and on the avoidance of negative outcomes, including arrest and
120 suicide.
121 (h) Each caller’s satisfaction with program services.
122 (8) A minimum of 5 percent of the funds appropriated
123 annually by the Legislature to the department for the
124 administration of the program shall be used for the promotion
125 and advertising of the program. The department shall use public
126 service announcements to the greatest extent possible in its
127 promotion and advertising of the program.
128 Section 2. For the 2018-2019 fiscal year, the sum of
129 $2,000,155 in recurring funds is appropriated from the General
130 Revenue Fund to the Department of Children and Families for the
131 purpose of implementing this act.
132 Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2018.