Capitol Update: February, 2021 |
|
COVID LIABILITY PROTECTIONS
for Health Care Providers
|
Newly filed this week in both the Senate & House. FCEP SUPPORTS efforts to protect our frontline physician heroes. We will work closely with the FMA to strength the bills below to make sure emergency medicine has this much needed liability protection.
SB 74 by Senator Jeff Brandes: COVID-19-related Claims Against Health Care Providers; Providing preliminary procedures for civil actions based on COVID-19-related claims; providing the standard of proof required at trial for such claims; providing immunity from liability for COVID-19-related claims under certain circumstances; requiring COVID-19-related claims to commence within a specified timeframe
Referred to Judiciary, Health Policy, Rules
- The bill requires a plaintiff who files a COVID-19-related lawsuit to prove that a health care provider’s conduct constituted gross negligence or intentional misconduct. The protections apply specifically to acts or omissions made in reliance upon government-issued health standards or guidance relating to COVID-19.
- Under the bill, a health care provider has strong liability protections when the provider substantially follows authoritative or applicable government-issued health standards or guidance related to COVID-19. The provider is also entitled to strong liability protections when interpreting or applying the standards or guidance with respect to the provision of health care or related services, or lack thereof, or the allocation of scarce resources or assistance with daily living.
- The bill establishes procedures to filter out claims that have insufficient factual support.
- The bill provides a one-year limitation period to bring a COVID-19-related claim against a health care provider. The period starts one year after the later of the date of death due to COVID-19, hospitalization related to COVID-19, or the first diagnosis of COVID-19.
- Current law provides different procedures for negligence claims against nursing homes and assisted living facilities than for other types of health care providers, such as doctors and hospitals. The bill provides that its provisions will apply to all health care providers with respect to COVID-19-related claims.
- The bill would take effect upon becoming a law and applies retroactively except to defendants named in lawsuits filed before the effective date of the bill. The liability protections will apply until 1 year after the termination or expiration of the state public health emergency relating to COVID-19, which was declared by the State Surgeon General, or any nationwide emergency declaration by the Federal Government, whichever is later.
By the House Health & Human Services Committee
|
|
Glitch bill to fix INFORMED CONSENT for PELVIC EXAM legislation |
FCEP worked over the summer with coalition partners to address concerns with the implementation of the written consent for pelvic exam legislation passed during the 2020 Session.
SB 716 by Senator Lauren Book: Consent for Pelvic Examinations; Revising the definition of the term “pelvic examination”; revising the circumstances under which a pelvic examination may be performed without written consent; authorizing written consent for a pelvic examination to be obtained as a part of a general consent form and to allow multiple health care practitioners or students to perform the examination, etc. Effective Date: 7/1/2021
Referred to Health Policy; Judiciary; Rules
HB 361 by Rep Evan Jenne: Consent for Pelvic Examinations: Revises circumstances under which pelvic examination may be performed without written consent; authorizes written consent for pelvic examination to be obtained as part of a general consent form & to allow multiple health care practitioners or students to perform the examination. Effective Date: July 1, 2021
Referred to Professions and Public Health Subcommittee; House Health & Human Services Committee
|
|
PIP Repeal/Bodily Injury
FCEP continues its efforts to educate policy makers on the impact of repealing Florida's No-Fault Auto Injury Coverage, and the delay in payment that will occur with a transition to a fault based legal system.
SB 54 by Senator Burgess: M otor Vehicle Insurance; Repealing provisions which comprise the Florida Motor Vehicle No-Fault Law; revising the motor vehicle insurance coverages that an applicant must show to register certain vehicles with the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles; revising financial responsibility requirements for owners or lessees of for-hire passenger transportation vehicles; revising conditions for awarding punitive damages; revising coverages subject to premium discounts for specified motor vehicle equipment; specifying persons whom medical payments coverage must protect, etc. APPROPRIATION: $83,651 Effective Date: Except as otherwise expressly provided in this act and except for this section, which shall take effect upon this act becoming a law, this act shall take effect January 1, 2022
Referred to Banking and Insurance; Judiciary; Rules, Heard in B&I on 1/26/21.
Bill to be heard in its 2nd committee of reference, Senate Judiciary on Feb 15, at 2:30pm.
HB 719 Motor Vehicle Insurance by Rep Erin Grall: Motor Vehicle Insurance: Repeals provisions relating Florida Motor Vehicle No-Fault Law; revises garage liability insurance requirements; revises minimum coverage requirements for proof of financial responsibility for motor vehicles; revises amount of certificate of deposit required to elect certain method of proof of financial responsibility; revises excess liability coverage requirements; revises financial responsibility requirements for owners or lessees of for-hire passenger transportation vehicles; revises coverages of motor vehicle policy which are subject to stacking prohibition; revises insurance requirements for transportation network companies or TNC drivers or vehicle owners. Effective Date: January 1, 2022
Note yet referred to committee.
Scope of Practice Bills
FCEP continues to protect the practice of medicine and safeguard patient access to board certified emergency physicians. The first two bills are OPPOSED by FCEP because they REMOVE the PRIMARY CARE stipulation for autonomous practice APRNs. The 2nd two would apply to PAs as well.
HB 111 by Rep Randy Maggard: Autonomous Practice by an Advanced Practice Registered Nurse: Revises practice requirements for autonomous advanced practice registered nurse.
Referred to Professional & Public Health Subcommittee; Health & Human Services Subcommittee.
SB 424 by Senator Jeff Brandes: Autonomous Practice by an Advanced Practice Registered Nurse: Revises practice requirements for autonomous advanced practice registered nurse.
Referred to Banking & Insurance; Health Policy & Rules.
HB 431- Physician Assistants by Rep Bob Rommel: Practice of Physician Assistants: Authorizes licensed physician assistant to provide signature, certification, stamp, verification, affidavit, or endorsement for specified reasons, with exception; deletes provision relating to performance of medical services by trainee; revises accreditation requirements; authorizes trainee to perform medical services within scope of approved program; revises physician assistant licensure requirements; revises & provides requirements for temporary licensure & license renewal; provides requirements for physician assistant to engage in autonomous practice.
Referred to Professions & Public Health; Health Care Appropriations; Health & Human Services.
SB 894- Physician Assistants by Senator Diaz: Physician Assistants: Deleting a limitation on the number of physician assistants a physician may supervise at one time; revising physician assistant continuing education requirements related to prescribing controlled substance medications; requiring the Board of Medicine and the Board of Osteopathic Medicine to register physician assistants as autonomous physician assistants if they meet specified criteria; authorizing physician assistants to directly bill and receive payment from public and private insurance companies
Referred to Health Policy; Health & Human Services Appropriations; Appropriations.
|
|
ALSO on FCEP's RADAR
and on committee agendas
|
|
SB 122- Surrendered Newborn Infants by Senator Baxley:: Surrendered Newborn Infants: Authorizing the Department of Health to approve, and certain hospitals, emergency medical services stations, and fire stations to use, newborn infant safety devices to accept surrendered newborn infants under certain circumstances; requiring such hospitals, emergency medical services stations, or fire stations to physically check and test the devices at specified intervals; providing additional locations to which the prohibition on the initiation of criminal investigations based solely on the surrendering of a newborn infant applies
To be heard in Senate HHS Appropriation on Feb 9, at 11am.
SB 280- Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Training in Public Schools by Senator Baxley:: Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Training in Public Schools; Providing that school districts are encouraged to provide basic training in first aid, including cardiopulmonary resuscitation, in specified grades; requiring school districts to provide basic training in first aid, including cardiopulmonary resuscitation, in specified grades; revising requirements for instruction in cardiopulmonary resuscitation.
To be heard in Senate Education on Feb 16, at 9am.
SB 362- Pediatric Cardiac Care by Senator Harrell: Pediatric Cardiac Care; Revising requirements for members of the pediatric cardiac technical advisory panel; extending sovereign immunity to apply to all individuals who are members of a site visit review team; requiring pediatric cardiac programs to include certain cases in the program’s required surgical volume; providing that pediatric cardiac surgical centers that are deemed by the panel to be noncompliant with certain standards must come into compliance with those standards within a specified timeframe
To be heard in Senate Health Policy on Feb 17, at 9am.
SB 388 Injured Police Canines by Senator Wright:: Injured Police Canines; Authorizing licensed life support services to transport injured police canines under certain circumstances; authorizing a paramedic or an emergency medical technician to provide emergency medical care to injured police canines under certain circumstances; providing for immunity from criminal and civil liability under certain circumstances
To be heard in Senate Criminal Justice on Feb 16, at 9am.
SB 538 Use of Epinephrine Auto-Injectors on Public K-20 Campuses by Senator Polsky:: Use of Epinephrine Auto-injectors on Public K-20 Campuses; Providing that state universities and Florida College System institutions are considered authorized entities for specified purposes relating to the emergency use of epinephrine auto-injectors; requiring, rather than authorizing, public schools to purchase or acquire a supply of epinephrine auto-injectors for specified purposes; requiring state universities and Florida College System institutions to purchase or acquire a supply of epinephrine auto-injectors for specified purposes
To be heard in Senate Children, Families & Elder Affairs on Feb 16, at 9am.
SB 590- Involuntary Examination of Minors Senator Harrell:: Involuntary Examinations of Minors; Revising parent, guardian, or caregiver notification requirements that must be met before an involuntary examination of a minor; revising parent and guardian notification requirements that must be met before conducting an involuntary examination of a minor who is removed from school, school transportation, or a school-sponsored activity; creating reporting requirements for schools relating to involuntary examinations of minors; requiring that certain plans include procedures to assist certain mental and behavioral health providers in attempts to verbally deescalate certain crisis situations before initiating an involuntary examination
To be heard in Senate Children, Families & Elder Affairs on Feb 16, at 9am.
To be heard in Senate Criminal Justice on Feb 16, at 9am.
SB 700- Telehealth by Senator Rodriguez: Telehealth; Requiring the Agency for Health Care Administration to reimburse the use of telehealth services under certain circumstances and subject to certain limitations; authorizing telehealth providers to prescribe specified controlled substances through telehealth under certain circumstances; authorizing out-of-state physician telehealth providers to engage in formal supervisory relationships with certain nonphysician health care practitioners in this state; authorizing registered pharmacy technicians to compound and dispense medicinal drugs under certain circumstances; exempting certain registered pharmacy technicians from specified prohibitions
To be heard in Senate Health Policy on Feb 17, at 9am.
Health Care Licensure Requirements; Requiring certain physicians to submit specified information to the Department of Health to be exempt from specified licensure requirements; requiring the department to notify such health care practitioners of their exemption within a specified timeframe
To be heard in Senate Health Policy on Feb 16, at 9am.
SB 828- Mental Health & Substance Abuse by Senator Book: Mental Health and Substance Abuse; Requiring facilities to inform respondents with a serious mental illness of the essential elements of recovery and provide them assistance in accessing a continuum of care regimen; authorizing the state to establish that a transfer evaluation was performed by providing the court with a copy of the evaluation before the close of the state’s case in chief; revising the requirements for when a person may be taken to a receiving facility for involuntary examination; revising the requirements for when a person may be ordered for involuntary inpatient placement; requiring the clerk of the court to notify the state attorney’s office upon the receipt of a petition filed for involuntary treatment services
To be heard in Senate Children, Families & Elder Affairs on Feb 16, at 9am.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
