Florida Senate - 2026 SB 606
By Senator Smith
17-00670A-26 2026606__
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to drowning prevention education;
3 creating s. 383.3363, F.S.; requiring the Department
4 of Health to develop educational materials on drowning
5 prevention safety measures and safe bathing practices
6 for specified purposes; providing requirements for
7 such materials; requiring hospitals, birth centers,
8 and home birth providers to provide the educational
9 materials to new parents and caregivers as part of
10 their postpartum education and care; requiring
11 hospitals, birth centers, and home health providers to
12 maintain proof of compliance with the required
13 distribution of the educational materials and make
14 such records available to the Agency for Health Care
15 Administration upon request; requiring childbirth
16 educators to provide the informational materials to
17 parents or caregivers receiving childbirth education
18 from them; amending ss. 383.318 and 395.1053, F.S.;
19 conforming provisions to changes made by the act;
20 providing an effective date.
21
22 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
23
24 Section 1. Section 383.3363, Florida Statutes, is created
25 to read:
26 383.3363 Education on drowning prevention safety measures
27 and safe bathing practices.—
28 (1) The Department of Health shall develop educational
29 materials on drowning prevention safety measures and safe
30 bathing practices to be distributed to parents or caregivers as
31 part of postpartum or childbirth education provided by
32 hospitals, birth centers, home birth providers, and childbirth
33 educators in this state. The materials must include, but need
34 not be limited to, instruction on all of the following:
35 (a) The increased risk of drowning for infants and toddlers
36 in bathtubs, pools, and other water sources, citing available
37 data on such drownings.
38 (b) Water safety measures parents can employ to prevent
39 drowning, emphasizing the importance of constant supervision of
40 infants and children while they are around water and the
41 benefits of early childhood swimming lessons and water
42 competency programs as an added layer of protection from
43 drownings.
44 (c) Additional safety hazards in the home setting and
45 evidence-based safe bathing practices.
46 (2) Each hospital, birth center, and home birth provider
47 providing maternity, prenatal, and newborn services shall
48 provide the educational materials developed under subsection (1)
49 to the parents or caregivers of a newborn as part of its
50 postpartum education and care. Hospitals, birth centers, and
51 home birth providers shall maintain proof of compliance with
52 this subsection and make such records available to the Agency
53 for Health Care Administration upon request.
54 (3) Childbirth educators shall provide the educational
55 materials developed under subsection (1) to the parents or
56 caregivers receiving childbirth education.
57 Section 2. Paragraph (j) is added to subsection (4) of
58 section 383.318, Florida Statutes, to read:
59 383.318 Postpartum care for birth center clients and
60 infants.—
61 (4) The birth center shall provide a postpartum evaluation
62 and followup care that includes all of the following:
63 (j) Provision of the educational materials on drowning
64 prevention safety measures and safe bathing practices developed
65 by the Department of Health under s. 383.3363. Birth centers
66 shall maintain proof of compliance with the requirements of this
67 paragraph and make such records available to the Agency for
68 Health Care Administration upon request.
69 Section 3. Section 395.1053, Florida Statutes, is amended
70 to read:
71 395.1053 Postpartum education.—
72 (1) A hospital that provides birthing services shall
73 provide each parent with postpartum education on the care of
74 newborns, which must include all of the following:
75 (a) incorporate Information on safe sleep practices and the
76 possible causes of Sudden Unexpected Infant Death. into the
77 hospital’s postpartum instruction on the care of newborns and
78 provide to each parent
79 (b) Provision of the informational pamphlet on infant and
80 childhood eye and vision disorders created by the department
81 pursuant to s. 383.14(3)(h).
82 (c) Provision of the educational materials on drowning
83 prevention safety measures and safe bathing practices developed
84 by the department under s. 383.3363.
85 (2) Hospitals shall maintain proof of compliance with the
86 requirements of this section and make such records available to
87 the agency upon request.
88 Section 4. This act shall take effect July 1, 2026.