Florida Senate - 2026 SB 94 By Senator Sharief 35-00392-26 202694__ 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to suicide prevention for active and 3 former members of the United States Armed Forces, the 4 National Guard, and their reserve components; 5 providing legislative findings and intent; amending s. 6 394.463, F.S.; requiring a facility conducting an 7 involuntary examination to include in its report to 8 the Baker Act Reporting Center whether the individual 9 examined is an active or former member of the United 10 States Armed Forces, the National Guard, or their 11 reserve components; providing an effective date. 12 13 WHEREAS, the Legislature finds the rate of suicide among 14 Florida active duty members and veterans of the United States 15 Armed Forces, the National Guard, and their reserve components 16 remains alarmingly high when compared to that of civilians, and 17 WHEREAS, according to the Office of Suicide Prevention, 18 there were 34.7 suicides per 100,000 veterans compared to 17.1 19 per 100,000 nonveterans reported in 2022, and 20 WHEREAS, current reporting requirements under the Baker Act 21 do not mandate the collection of data on whether individuals 22 subject to involuntary examinations are active duty members or 23 veterans of the United States Armed Forces, the National Guard, 24 or their reserve components, and 25 WHEREAS, without accurate reporting, the state lacks 26 critical information needed to determine whether the Baker Act 27 is being applied appropriately to active duty members and 28 veterans of the United States Armed Forces, the National Guard, 29 or their reserve components, and 30 WHEREAS, the Legislature intends to strengthen oversight 31 and accountability in the application of the Baker Act by 32 requiring mandatory reporting to include identification of a 33 patient’s military status to support improved policymaking, 34 prevention strategies, and positive mental health outcomes, NOW, 35 THEREFORE, 36 37 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 38 39 Section 1. Subsection (6) is added to section 394.463, 40 Florida Statutes, to read: 41 394.463 Involuntary examination.— 42 (6) VETERAN AND MILITARY STATUS REPORTING.—Any facility 43 conducting an involuntary examination pursuant to this section 44 must include in its report to the Baker Act Reporting Center at 45 the Louis de la Parte Florida Mental Health Institute whether 46 the individual examined is an active or former member of the 47 United States Armed Forces, the National Guard, or their reserve 48 components. 49 Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2026.