The Florida Senate

393.064  Prevention.--

(1)  The Department of Children and Family Services shall give priority to the development, planning, and implementation of programs which have the potential to prevent, correct, cure, or reduce the severity of developmental disabilities. The department shall direct an interdepartmental and interprogram effort for the continued development of a prevention plan and program. The department shall identify, through demonstration projects, through departmental program evaluation, and through monitoring of programs and projects conducted outside of the department, any medical, social, economic, or educational methods, techniques, or procedures which have the potential to effectively ameliorate, correct, or cure developmental disabilities. The department shall determine the costs and benefits that would be associated with such prevention efforts and shall implement, or recommend the implementation of, those methods, techniques, or procedures which are found likely to be cost-beneficial. The department in its legislative budget request shall identify funding needs for such prevention programs.

(2)  Prevention services provided by the developmental services program include services to high-risk and developmentally disabled children from birth to 5 years of age, and their families, to meet the intent of chapter 411. Such services shall include individual evaluations or assessments necessary to diagnose a developmental disability or high-risk condition and to determine appropriate individual family and support services, unless evaluations or assessments are the responsibility of the Division of Children's Medical Services Prevention and Intervention for children ages birth to 3 years eligible for services under this chapter or part H of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, and may include:

(a)  Early intervention services, including developmental training and specialized therapies. Early intervention services, which are the responsibility of the Division of Children's Medical Services Prevention and Intervention for children ages birth to 3 years who are eligible for services under this chapter or under part H of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, shall not be provided through the developmental services program unless funding is specifically appropriated to the developmental services program for this purpose.

(b)  Support services, such as respite care, parent education and training, parent-to-parent counseling, homemaker services, and other services which allow families to maintain and provide quality care to children in their homes. The Division of Children's Medical Services Prevention and Intervention is responsible for the provision of services to children from birth to 3 years who are eligible for services under this chapter.

(3)  Other agencies of state government shall cooperate with and assist the department, within available resources, in implementing programs which have the potential to prevent, or reduce the severity of, developmental disabilities and shall consider the findings and recommendations of the department in developing and implementing agency programs and formulating agency budget requests.

(4)  There is created at the developmental services institution in Gainesville a research and education unit. Such unit shall be named the Raymond C. Philips Research and Education Unit. The functions of such unit shall include:

(a)  Research into the etiology of developmental disabilities.

(b)  Ensuring that new knowledge is rapidly disseminated throughout the developmental services program of the Department of Children and Family Services.

(c)  Diagnosis of unusual conditions and syndromes associated with developmental disabilities in clients identified throughout the developmental services programs.

(d)  Evaluation of families of clients with developmental disabilities of genetic origin in order to provide them with genetic counseling aimed at preventing the recurrence of the disorder in other family members.

(e)  Ensuring that health professionals in the developmental services institution at Gainesville have access to information systems that will allow them to remain updated on newer knowledge and maintain their postgraduate education standards.

(f)  Enhancing staff training for professionals throughout the department in the areas of genetics and developmental disabilities.

(5)  The Department of Children and Family Services shall have the authority, within available resources, to contract for the supervision and management of the Raymond C. Philips Research and Education Unit, and such contract shall include specific program objectives.

History.--s. 1, ch. 77-335; s. 92, ch. 79-164; ss. 1, 2, ch. 79-367; s. 5, ch. 82-213; s. 45, ch. 83-218; s. 8, ch. 89-308; s. 4, ch. 94-154; s. 81, ch. 99-8; s. 46, ch. 2000-139; s. 13, ch. 2000-153.

Note.--Consolidation of s. 393.064 and former s. 393.20.