Florida Senate - 2014                       CS for CS for SB 722
       
       
        
       By the Committees on Children, Families, and Elder Affairs; and
       Health Policy; and Senator Garcia
       
       
       
       
       586-03142-14                                           2014722c2
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to newborn health screening; amending
    3         s. 383.14, F.S.; authorizing the State Public Health
    4         Laboratory to release the results of a newborn’s
    5         hearing and metabolic tests or screenings to the
    6         newborn’s health care practitioner; defining the term
    7         “health care practitioner” as it relates to such
    8         release; amending s. 383.145, F.S.; updating a cross
    9         reference; creating s. 383.146, F.S.; requiring an
   10         audiologist to provide an opportunity for the parent
   11         or legal guardian of an infant or toddler who is
   12         diagnosed with a hearing impairment to provide contact
   13         information so that he or she may receive information
   14         directly from specified service providers; requiring
   15         the Department of Health to post a list of certain
   16         service providers on the department website; requiring
   17         the audiologist or his or her designee to transmit a
   18         consent form to the providers listed on the department
   19         website; providing an effective date.
   20          
   21  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   22  
   23         Section 1. Paragraph (c) of subsection (1) of section
   24  383.14, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
   25         383.14 Screening for metabolic disorders, other hereditary
   26  and congenital disorders, and environmental risk factors.—
   27         (1) SCREENING REQUIREMENTS.—To help ensure access to the
   28  maternal and child health care system, the Department of Health
   29  shall promote the screening of all newborns born in Florida for
   30  metabolic, hereditary, and congenital disorders known to result
   31  in significant impairment of health or intellect, as screening
   32  programs accepted by current medical practice become available
   33  and practical in the judgment of the department. The department
   34  shall also promote the identification and screening of all
   35  newborns in this state and their families for environmental risk
   36  factors such as low income, poor education, maternal and family
   37  stress, emotional instability, substance abuse, and other high
   38  risk conditions associated with increased risk of infant
   39  mortality and morbidity to provide early intervention,
   40  remediation, and prevention services, including, but not limited
   41  to, parent support and training programs, home visitation, and
   42  case management. Identification, perinatal screening, and
   43  intervention efforts shall begin prior to and immediately
   44  following the birth of the child by the attending health care
   45  provider. Such efforts shall be conducted in hospitals,
   46  perinatal centers, county health departments, school health
   47  programs that provide prenatal care, and birthing centers, and
   48  reported to the Office of Vital Statistics.
   49         (c) Release of screening results.—Notwithstanding any other
   50  law to the contrary, the State Public Health Laboratory may
   51  release, directly or through the Children’s Medical Services
   52  program, the results of a newborn’s hearing and metabolic tests
   53  or screenings screening to the newborn’s health care
   54  practitioner. As used in this paragraph, the term “health care
   55  practitioner” means a physician or physician assistant licensed
   56  under chapter 458; an osteopathic physician or physician
   57  assistant licensed under chapter 459; an advanced registered
   58  nurse practitioner, registered nurse, or licensed practical
   59  nurse licensed under part I of chapter 464; a midwife licensed
   60  under chapter 467; a speech-language pathologist or audiologist
   61  licensed under part I of chapter 468; or a dietician or
   62  nutritionist licensed under part X of chapter 468 primary care
   63  physician.
   64         Section 2. Paragraphs (i) and (k) of subsection (3) of
   65  section 383.145, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
   66         383.145 Newborn and infant hearing screening.—
   67         (3) REQUIREMENTS FOR SCREENING OF NEWBORNS; INSURANCE
   68  COVERAGE; REFERRAL FOR ONGOING SERVICES.—
   69         (i) By October 1, 2000, Newborn hearing screening must be
   70  conducted on all newborns in hospitals in this state on birth
   71  admission. When a newborn is delivered in a facility other than
   72  a hospital, the parents must be instructed on the importance of
   73  having the hearing screening performed and must be given
   74  information to assist them in having the screening performed
   75  within 3 months after the child’s birth.
   76         (k) A Any child who is diagnosed as having a permanent
   77  hearing impairment shall be referred to the primary care
   78  physician for medical management, treatment, and followup
   79  services. Furthermore, in accordance with Pub. L. No. 108-446
   80  105-17, Infants and Toddlers with Disabilities The Infants and
   81  Toddlers Program, Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, a
   82  any child from birth to 36 months of age who is diagnosed as
   83  having a hearing impairment that requires ongoing special
   84  hearing services shall must be referred to the Children’s
   85  Medical Services Early Intervention Program serving the
   86  geographical area in which the child resides.
   87         Section 3. Section 383.146, Florida Statutes, is created to
   88  read:
   89         383.146Infants and toddlers who are deaf or hard of
   90  hearing; notice of service providers.—
   91         (1) At the time that an audiologist diagnoses an infant or
   92  toddler as having a permanent hearing impairment, the
   93  audiologist or his or her designee shall ask the child’s parent
   94  or legal guardian if he or she would like to authorize the
   95  release of contact information in order to receive direct
   96  correspondence from qualified Early Steps providers that offer
   97  early intervention services and that specialize in serving
   98  children with hearing loss. A parent or legal guardian that
   99  wishes to receive the direct correspondence shall authorize the
  100  release of the contact information by signing a consent form.
  101         (2) The Department of Health shall post on its website a
  102  list of qualified Early Steps providers of early intervention
  103  services which specialize in serving children with hearing loss
  104  and which have notified the department of their interest to
  105  provide direct communication to families who wish to receive
  106  information about the services that they provide.
  107         (3) The audiologist or his or her designee shall send by
  108  secure transmission the consent form to those providers listed
  109  on the department’s website.
  110         Section 4. This act shall take effect July 1, 2014.