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The Florida Senate

2015 Florida Statutes

Title XXIX PUBLIC HEALTH
Chapter 381 PUBLIC HEALTH: GENERAL PROVISIONS Entire Chapter
SECTION 82
Ed and Ethel Moore Alzheimer’s Disease Research Program.
F.S. 381.82
381.82 Ed and Ethel Moore Alzheimer’s Disease Research Program.—
(1) The Ed and Ethel Moore Alzheimer’s Disease Research Program is created within the Department of Health. The purpose of the program is to fund research leading to prevention of or a cure for Alzheimer’s disease. The long-term goals of the program are to:
(a) Improve the health of Floridians by researching better prevention and diagnoses of and treatments and cures for Alzheimer’s disease.
(b) Expand the foundation of knowledge relating to the prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and cure of Alzheimer’s disease.
(c) Stimulate economic activity in the state in areas related to Alzheimer’s disease research.
(2)(a) Funds appropriated for the Ed and Ethel Moore Alzheimer’s Disease Research Program shall be used exclusively for the award of grants and fellowships through a competitive process for research relating to the prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and cure of Alzheimer’s disease and for expenses incurred in the administration of this section. Priority shall be granted to research designed to prevent or cure Alzheimer’s disease.
(b) Applications for Alzheimer’s disease research funding under the program may be submitted from any university or established research institute in the state. All qualified investigators in the state, regardless of institution affiliation, shall have equal access and opportunity to compete for research funding. The following types of applications may be considered for funding:
1. Investigator-initiated research grants.
2. Institutional research grants.
3. Predoctoral and postdoctoral research fellowships.
4. Collaborative research grants, including those that advance the finding of cures through basic or applied research.
(3) There is created within the Department of Health the Alzheimer’s Disease Research Grant Advisory Board.
(a) The board shall consist of 11 members appointed by the State Surgeon General. The board shall be composed of two gerontologists, two geriatric psychiatrists, two geriatricians, two neuroscientists, and three neurologists. Initial appointments to the board shall be made by October 1, 2014. The board members shall serve 4-year terms, except that, to provide for staggered terms, five of the initial appointees shall serve 2-year terms and six shall serve 4-year terms. All subsequent appointments shall be for 4-year terms. The chair of the board shall be elected from the membership of the board and shall serve as chair for 2 years. An appointed member may not serve more than two consecutive terms. Appointed members must have experience in Alzheimer’s disease or related biomedical research. The board shall adopt internal organizational procedures as necessary for its efficient organization. The board shall establish and follow rigorous guidelines for ethical conduct and adhere to a strict policy with regard to conflicts of interest. A member of the board may not participate in any discussion or decision of the board or a panel with respect to a research proposal by any firm, entity, or agency with which the member is associated as a member of the governing body or as an employee or with which the member has entered into a contractual arrangement.
(b) The department shall provide such staff, information, and other assistance as is reasonably necessary to assist the board in carrying out its responsibilities. Members of the board shall serve without compensation and may not receive reimbursement for per diem or travel expenses.
(c) The board shall advise the State Surgeon General as to the scope of the research program and shall submit its recommendations for proposals to be funded to the State Surgeon General by December 15 of each year. Grants and fellowships shall be awarded by the State Surgeon General, after consultation with the board, on the basis of scientific merit. Other responsibilities of the board may include, but are not limited to, providing advice on program priorities and emphases; assisting in the development of appropriate linkages to nonacademic entities, such as voluntary organizations, health care delivery institutions, industry, government agencies, and public officials; and developing and providing oversight regarding mechanisms for the dissemination of research results.
(d)1. Applications provided to the board for Alzheimer’s disease research grants under this section, and any records generated by the board relating to review of such applications, except final recommendations, are confidential and exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution.
2. Those portions of a meeting of the board during which applications for Alzheimer’s disease research grants under this section are discussed are exempt from s. 286.011 and s. 24(b), Art. I of the State Constitution. The closed portion of a meeting must be recorded. The recording shall be maintained by the board and shall be subject to disclosure in accordance with subparagraph 3.
3. Information that is held confidential and exempt under this paragraph may be disclosed with the express written consent of the individual to whom the information pertains or the individual’s legally authorized representative, or by court order upon a showing of good cause.
4. This paragraph is subject to the Open Government Sunset Review Act in accordance with s. 119.15 and shall stand repealed on October 2, 2019, unless reviewed and saved from repeal through reenactment by the Legislature.
(4) The board shall submit a fiscal-year progress report on the programs under its purview annually to the Governor, the President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and the State Surgeon General by February 15. The report must include:
(a) A list of research projects supported by grants or fellowships awarded under the program.
(b) A list of recipients of program grants or fellowships.
(c) A list of publications in peer-reviewed journals involving research supported by grants or fellowships awarded under the program.
(d) The state ranking and total amount of Alzheimer’s disease research funding currently flowing into the state from the National Institutes of Health.
(e) New grants for Alzheimer’s disease research which were funded based on research supported by grants or fellowships awarded under the program.
(f) Progress toward programmatic goals, particularly in the prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and cure of Alzheimer’s disease.
(g) Recommendations to further the mission of the program.
(5) The activities of the board provided in subsection (3) are exempt from chapter 120.
(6) The department may adopt rules as necessary to implement the provisions of this section.
(7) Implementation of the Ed and Ethel Moore Alzheimer’s Disease Research Program is subject to legislative appropriation.
History.—s. 3, ch. 2014-163; s. 1, ch. 2014-164.