| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to hospices; amending s. 400.602, F.S.; |
| 3 | providing for licensure of for-profit hospices; limiting |
| 4 | the location of for-profit hospices to defined service |
| 5 | areas; providing a definition; requiring a report to the |
| 6 | Legislature; providing an effective date. |
| 7 |
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| 8 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 9 |
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| 10 | Section 1. Subsection (6) of section 400.602, Florida |
| 11 | Statutes, is amended, and subsection (7) is added to that |
| 12 | section, to read: |
| 13 | 400.602 Licensure required; prohibited acts; exemptions; |
| 14 | display, transferability of license.-- |
| 15 | (6) Notwithstanding subsection (7) and s. 400.601(3), at |
| 16 | any time after July 1, 1995, any entity entitled to licensure |
| 17 | under subsection (5) may obtain a license for up to two |
| 18 | additional hospices in accordance with the other requirements of |
| 19 | this part and upon receipt of any certificate of need that may |
| 20 | be required under the provisions of ss. 408.031-408.045. |
| 21 | (7) Notwithstanding the provisions of s. 400.601(3), any |
| 22 | hospice that is organized as a for-profit corporation and |
| 23 | provides a continuum of palliative and supportive care for the |
| 24 | terminally ill patient and his or her family may obtain a |
| 25 | license in accordance with the other requirements of this part |
| 26 | and upon receipt of any certificate of need that may be required |
| 27 | under the provisions of ss. 408.031?408.045 to provide care in: |
| 28 | (a) A hospice service area with a population of 750,000 or |
| 29 | more, except that a for-profit hospice may not be located in any |
| 30 | of the counties in the service area that have a population of |
| 31 | 50,000 or less; or |
| 32 | (b) A hospice service area in which a for-profit hospice |
| 33 | is currently licensed to operate under subsections (5) and (6). |
| 34 |
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| 35 | For purposes of this subsection, the term "hospice service area" |
| 36 | means a geographic area as defined in rule 59C-1.0355, Florida |
| 37 | Administrative Code. |
| 38 | Section 2. No later than January 1, 2008, the Agency for |
| 39 | Health Care Administration shall submit to the President of the |
| 40 | Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives a report |
| 41 | analyzing the impact of for-profit hospices on the delivery of |
| 42 | care to terminally ill patients and include in the report a |
| 43 | review of the quality of care offered by for-profit hospices, |
| 44 | changes in the competitive marketplace in hospice service areas, |
| 45 | and any other information deemed pertinent by the agency. |
| 46 | Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2006. |