HB 5093

1	A bill to be entitled
2	An act relating to tuberculosis control; amending ss.
3	392.51 and 392.69, F.S.; revising legislative intent with
4	respect to delivery of tuberculosis control services;
5	requiring appropriations to be designated for the
6	monitoring of and provision of services to persons with
7	contagious tuberculosis and to provide a system of
8	voluntary, community-oriented care; removing requirements
9	for the use of funds; revising duties of the advisory
10	board; removing references to the A.G. Holley State
11	Hospital; providing an effective date.
12
13	Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
14
15	Section 1.  Section 392.51, Florida Statutes, is amended to
16	read:
17	392.51  Findings and intent.--The Legislature finds and
18	declares that active tuberculosis is a highly contagious
19	infection that is sometimes fatal and constitutes a serious
20	threat to the public health. The Legislature finds that there is
21	a significant reservoir of tuberculosis infection in this state
22	and that there is a need to develop community programs to
23	identify tuberculosis and to respond quickly with appropriate
24	measures. The Legislature finds that some patients who have
25	active tuberculosis have complex medical, social, and economic
26	problems that make outpatient control of the disease difficult,
27	if not impossible, without posing a threat to the public health.
28	The Legislature finds that in order to protect the citizenry
29	from those few persons who pose a threat to the public, it is
30	necessary to establish a system of mandatory contact
31	identification, treatment to cure, hospitalization, and
32	isolation for contagious cases and to provide a system of
33	voluntary, community-oriented care and surveillance in all other
34	cases. The Legislature finds that the delivery of tuberculosis
35	control services is best accomplished by the coordinated efforts
36	of the respective county health departments, the A.G. Holley
37	State Hospital, and the private health care delivery system.
38	Section 2.  Section 392.69, Florida Statutes, is amended to
39	read:
40	392.69  Appropriation, sinking, and maintenance trust
41	funds; additional powers of the department.--
42	(1)  The Legislature may shall include in its annual
43	appropriations act funds a sufficient sum for the purpose of
44	carrying out the provisions of this chapter.
45	(2)  All moneys required to be paid by the several counties
46	and patients for the care and maintenance of patients
47	hospitalized by the department for tuberculosis shall be paid to
48	the department, and the department shall immediately transmit
49	these moneys to the Chief Financial Officer, who shall deposit
50	the moneys in the Operations and Maintenance Trust Fund, which
51	shall contain all moneys appropriated by the Legislature or
52	received from patients or other third parties and shall be
53	expended to support the surveillance, treatment to cure,
54	hospitalization, and isolation for contagious cases of
55	tuberculosis and to provide a system of voluntary, community-
56	oriented care for the operation and maintenance of the state-
57	operated tuberculosis hospital.
58	(3)  In the execution of its public health program
59	functions, notwithstanding s. 216.292(2)(b)2., the department is
60	hereby authorized to use any sums of money which it may
61	heretofore have saved or which it may hereafter save from its
62	regular operating appropriation, or use any sums of money
63	acquired by gift or grant, or any sums of money it may acquire
64	by the issuance of revenue certificates of the hospital to match
65	or supplement any state or federal funds, or any moneys received
66	by said department by gift or otherwise, for the construction or
67	maintenance of additional facilities or improvement to existing
68	facilities, as the department deems necessary.
69	(3)(4)  The department shall appoint an advisory board,
70	which shall meet quarterly to review and make recommendations
71	relating to coordinating patient care for noncompliant
72	tuberculosis patients at A. G. Holley State Hospital. Members
73	shall be appointed for terms of 3 years, with such appointments
74	being staggered so that terms of no more than two members expire
75	in any one year. Members shall serve without compensation, but
76	they are entitled to be reimbursed for per diem and travel
77	expenses under s. 112.061.
78	Section 3.  This act shall take effect January 1, 2009.

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.