Florida Senate - 2010 SB 1278
By Senator Wilson
33-00947-10 20101278__
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to school health services; providing a
3 short title; creating s. 381.0058, F.S., relating to
4 public-private partnerships for the provision of
5 school nurse services; providing legislative intent
6 and purpose; providing duties of the State Surgeon
7 General and the Commissioner of Education in
8 publicizing the availability of matching funds and
9 determining eligibility for such funds; providing a
10 process for a community to submit a proposal to
11 receive matching funds; providing for the scope of
12 services to be provided; providing review and
13 selection criteria; providing legislative intent
14 relating to funding the act; providing an
15 appropriation; providing an effective date.
16
17 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
18
19 Section 1. This act may be cited as the “One School, One
20 Nurse Act.”
21 Section 2. Section 381.0058, Florida Statutes, is created
22 to read:
23 381.0058 Matching funds for school nurse services; public
24 private partnerships.—
25 (1) It is the intent of the Legislature that matching
26 funds, in addition to those provided under s. 381.0056 for the
27 School Health Services Act and s. 381.0057 for school health
28 services funding, be provided in those communities where
29 interest in school health services is evidenced by the
30 participation of public or private entities in the funding or
31 delivery of school nurse services. The purpose of this funding
32 is to encourage the development of those programs that offer the
33 greatest potential for promoting the health of students,
34 increasing the availability of and access to nurses in the
35 school setting, and fostering greater community participation in
36 the delivery of school nurse services. Matching funds shall be
37 available specifically for implementing the programs described
38 in ss. 381.0056, 381.0057, and 402.3026 which are designed to
39 meet the particular needs of the community. Further, it is the
40 intent of the Legislature that tobacco-settlement revenue be
41 used to pay for health and human services for children.
42 (2) The State Surgeon General, or his or her designee, in
43 cooperation with the Commissioner of Education, or his or her
44 designee, shall publicize the availability of matching funds for
45 public and private entities committed to enhancing the
46 availability of school nurse services, as reflected in formal
47 agreements that are part of the local school health services
48 plan.
49 (3) The State Surgeon General, or his or her designees, in
50 cooperation with the Commissioner of Education, or his or her
51 designees, in equal representation, shall form a committee to
52 determine the eligibility of sites to receive matching funds.
53 (4) Any community that seeks to receive state matching
54 funds under this section must submit a proposal to the committee
55 established in subsection (3). The proposal must state the goals
56 of the program, provide specific plans for enhancing local
57 resources available for school nurse services, and describe all
58 of the health services to be made available to students from
59 matching funds provided under this section. A county health
60 department or school district that receives matching funds may
61 not supplant more than 50 percent of the current local
62 contributions to school health services funding, as documented
63 in the local school health services plan.
64 (5) In addition to the merits of a proposal, the award of
65 matching funds must be based on those proposals from sites that
66 include county health departments and school districts that most
67 closely meet the following criteria:
68 (a) Have evidence of a comprehensive inservice staff
69 development plan.
70 (b) Have evidence of a cooperative working relationship
71 between the county health department and the school district,
72 and have community as well as parental support.
73 (c) Have a high percentage of subsidized school lunches.
74 (d) Have a high incidence of medically underserved high
75 risk children, low birthweight babies, infant mortality, or
76 teenage pregnancy.
77 (e) Have a high incidence of children who have chronic
78 health conditions or high-risk behavioral problems.
79 (f) Have documented in the local school health services
80 plan a commitment from community entities to fund or provide
81 other direct resources for the enhanced availability of school
82 health services.
83 (g) Have a plan to ensure billing for Medicaid funding for
84 services rendered under the certified school match program or
85 the county health department certified match program as
86 specified in s. 409.9122.
87
88 Although these criteria are part of the review process for
89 proposals, they are not to be construed as the sole factors to
90 be considered in the proposal-review process. A site’s ability
91 to address, and interest in addressing, locally identified needs
92 and priorities must also be considered. In addition, receipt of
93 matching funds is not intended to diminish a site’s eligibility
94 for base funding for school health services.
95 Section 3. It is the intent of the Legislature that
96 sufficient resources be made available to fund a nurse in every
97 public school in the state as provided in this act. The
98 Legislature recognizes that extensive resources will be
99 necessary to achieve this intent, and that a portion of these
100 resources can be found from a variety of existing resources. The
101 Legislature recognizes that existing funding for basic and
102 comprehensive school health services and full-service schools,
103 as created under ss. 381.0056 and 381.0057, Florida Statutes,
104 can be used as partial funding. The Legislature further
105 recognizes that funding earned by local school districts and
106 county health departments from the Agency for Health Care
107 Administration for the delivery of services to Medicaid-eligible
108 students can also be used as partial funding. Finally, the
109 Legislature recognizes that local funds currently being used for
110 school health services are now eligible for matching funds under
111 the school nurse services provided through public-private
112 partnerships as created by this act. It is the intent of the
113 Legislature that the remainder of resources necessary for
114 placing a nurse in every school be derived from the state’s
115 tobacco-settlement revenue.
116 Section 4. The sum of $75,000 is appropriated from the
117 General Revenue Fund to the Department of Health for the purpose
118 of convening a school health summit as recommended by Senate
119 Interim Project Report 98-30, September 1998.
120 Section 5. This act shall take effect July 1, 2010.