CS/HB 393

1	A bill to be entitled
2	An act relating to the regulation of professions; amending
3	s. 20.165, F.S.; authorizing the Department of Business
4	and Professional Regulation to require certain licensees
5	and applicants to be governed by provisions providing for
6	programs for impaired practitioners under the jurisdiction
7	of the Division of Medical Quality Assurance within the
8	Department of Health; authorizing the Department of
9	Business and Professional Regulation to exercise any of
10	the powers granted to the Department of Health with
11	respect to such programs; amending s. 456.001, F.S.;
12	redefining the term "health care practitioner" as it
13	relates to the regulation of health care professions to
14	include those persons certified or licensed to provide
15	medical transportation services or radiological services;
16	amending s. 456.0635, F.S.; exempting a health care
17	practitioner from disqualification for a license,
18	certificate, or registration if the practitioner was
19	suffering from an addiction or impairment at the time of
20	the disqualifying offense and subsequently completes an
21	impaired practitioner program; amending s. 456.074, F.S.;
22	requiring the State Surgeon General to issue an emergency
23	order suspending or restricting a health care
24	practitioner's license under certain circumstances;
25	amending s. 456.076, F.S.; revising the types of entities
26	that may be retained by the Department of Health as an
27	impaired practitioner consultant; exempting such an entity
28	from certain licensing requirements if the entity employs
29	or contracts with licensed professionals; revising the
30	schools or programs that may contract for impaired
31	practitioner consulting services; limiting the liability
32	of certain medical schools and schools that prepare health
33	care practitioners and veterinarians for licensure for
34	referring a student to an impaired practitioner
35	consultant; revising requirements for forwarding
36	information about impaired licensees and applicants for
37	licensure to impaired practitioner consultants; clarifying
38	the types of legal proceedings related to services
39	provided by impaired practitioner consultants that are
40	defended by the Department of Financial Services;
41	clarifying requirements for an impaired practitioner
42	consultant to maintain as confidential certain information
43	concerning an impaired practitioner; providing an
44	effective date.
45
46	Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
47
48	Section 1.  Subsection (10) is added to section 20.165,
49	Florida Statutes, to read:
50	20.165  Department of Business and Professional
51	Regulation.-There is created a Department of Business and
52	Professional Regulation.
53	(10)  The Department of Business and Professional
54	Regulation may require a person licensed by or applying for a
55	license from the department to be governed by s. 456.076 as if
56	the person were under the jurisdiction of the Division of
57	Medical Quality Assurance. The Department of Business and
58	Professional Regulation may exercise any of the powers granted
59	to the Department of Health by s. 456.076.
60	Section 2.  Subsection (4) of section 456.001, Florida
61	Statutes, is amended to read:
62	456.001  Definitions.-As used in this chapter, the term:
63	(4)  "Health care practitioner" means any person licensed
64	under part III of chapter 401; chapter 457; chapter 458; chapter
65	459; chapter 460; chapter 461; chapter 462; chapter 463; chapter
66	464; chapter 465; chapter 466; chapter 467; part I, part II,
67	part III, part IV, part V, part X, part XIII, or part XIV of
68	chapter 468; chapter 478; chapter 480; part III or part IV of
69	chapter 483; chapter 484; chapter 486; chapter 490; or chapter
70	491.
71	Section 3.  Subsection (2) of section 456.0635, Florida
72	Statutes, is amended to read:
73	456.0635  Medicaid fraud; disqualification for license,
74	certificate, or registration.-
75	(2)  Each board within the jurisdiction of the department,
76	or the department if there is no board, shall refuse to admit a
77	candidate to any examination and refuse to issue or renew a
78	license, certificate, or registration to any applicant if the
79	candidate or applicant or any principal, officer, agent,
80	managing employee, or affiliated person of the applicant, has
81	been:
82	(a)  Convicted of, or entered a plea of guilty or nolo
83	contendere to, regardless of adjudication, a felony under
84	chapter 409, chapter 817, chapter 893, 21 U.S.C. ss. 801-970, or
85	42 U.S.C. ss. 1395-1396, unless the sentence and any subsequent
86	period of probation for such conviction or pleas ended more than
87	15 years before prior to the date of the application. The
88	disqualification set forth in this paragraph does not apply to a
89	person who is determined to have been suffering from an
90	addiction or impairment at the time of the offense for which the
91	person was convicted, or to a person who entered a plea of
92	guilty or nolo contendere to, regardless of adjudication, a
93	felony under chapter 893, and who subsequently enrolled in and
94	continues to successfully participate in or has subsequently
95	successfully completed an impaired practitioner program as set
96	forth in s. 456.076(1) or the equivalent of such program in
97	another jurisdiction. This exception from disqualification does
98	not prohibit or require action against the license, certificate,
99	or registration of such person pursuant to the disciplinary
100	provisions of this chapter or the appropriate practice act;
101	(b)  Terminated for cause from the Florida Medicaid program
102	pursuant to s. 409.913, unless the applicant has been in good
103	standing with the Florida Medicaid program for the most recent 5
104	years; or
105	(c)  Terminated for cause, pursuant to the appeals
106	procedures established by the state or Federal Government, from
107	any other state Medicaid program or the federal Medicare
108	program, unless the applicant has been in good standing with a
109	state Medicaid program or the federal Medicare program for the
110	most recent 5 years and the termination occurred at least 20
111	years before prior to the date of the application.
112	Section 4.  Subsection (5) is added to section 456.074,
113	Florida Statutes, to read:
114	456.074  Certain health care practitioners; immediate
115	suspension of license.-
116	(5)  If an impaired practitioner treatment program
117	consultant retained by the department pursuant to s. 456.076
118	discloses to the department that a health care practitioner is
119	not progressing satisfactorily in that treatment program and the
120	health care practitioner's impairment affects his or her
121	practice and constitutes an immediate, serious danger to the
122	public health, safety, or welfare, the State Surgeon General
123	shall review the matter within 10 business days after receiving
124	the disclosure and, if warranted, shall issue an emergency order
125	suspending or restricting the health care practitioner's
126	license.
127	Section 5.  Subsection (2), paragraph (d) of subsection
128	(3), and paragraph (b) of subsection (7) of section 456.076,
129	Florida Statutes, are amended, and subsection (8) is added to
130	that section, to read:
131	456.076  Treatment programs for impaired practitioners.-
132	(2)(a)  The department shall retain one or more impaired
133	practitioner consultants. Each The consultant must shall be a
134	licensee under the jurisdiction of the Division of Medical
135	Quality Assurance within the department and who must be:
136	1.  A practitioner or recovered practitioner licensed under
137	chapter 458, chapter 459, or part I of chapter 464;, or
138	2.  An entity employing a medical director or employing a
139	registered nurse as an executive director, who must be a
140	practitioner or recovered practitioner licensed under chapter
141	458, chapter 459, or part I of chapter 464.
142	(b)  An entity that is retained as a consultant under this
143	section and employs a medical director or registered nurse as an
144	executive director is not required to be licensed as a substance
145	abuse provider or mental health treatment provider under chapter
146	394, chapter 395, or chapter 397 in order to operate as a
147	consultant under this section if the entity employs or contracts
148	with licensed professionals to perform or appropriately
149	supervise any specific treatment or evaluation that requires
150	individual licensing or supervision.
151	(c)  The consultant shall assist the probable cause panel
152	and department in carrying out the responsibilities of this
153	section. This includes shall include working with department
154	investigators to determine whether a practitioner is, in fact,
155	impaired. The consultant may contract for services to be
156	provided, for appropriate compensation, if requested by a the
157	school or program, for students enrolled in a school schools for
158	licensure as a health care practitioner under chapter 456 or a
159	veterinarian under chapter 474 allopathic physicians or
160	physician assistants under chapter 458, osteopathic physicians
161	or physician assistants under chapter 459, nurses under chapter
162	464, or pharmacists under chapter 465 who are alleged to be
163	impaired as a result of the misuse or abuse of alcohol or drugs,
164	or both, or due to a mental or physical condition.
165	(d)  The department is not responsible under any
166	circumstances for paying the costs of care provided by approved
167	treatment providers, and the department is not responsible for
168	paying the costs of consultants' services provided for such
169	students.
170	(e)  A medical school accredited by the Liaison Committee
171	on Medical Education of the Commission on Osteopathic College
172	Accreditation, or another other school providing for the
173	education of students enrolled in preparation for licensure as a
174	health care practitioner under chapter 456 or a veterinarian
175	under chapter 474 allopathic physicians under chapter 458 or
176	osteopathic physicians under chapter 459, which school is
177	governed by accreditation standards requiring notice and the
178	provision of due process procedures to students, is not liable
179	in any civil action for referring a student to the consultant
180	retained by the department or for disciplinary actions that
181	adversely affect the status of a student when the disciplinary
182	actions are instituted in reasonable reliance on the
183	recommendations, reports, or conclusions provided by such
184	consultant, if the school, in referring the student or taking
185	disciplinary action, adheres to the due process procedures
186	adopted by the applicable accreditation entities and if the
187	school committed no intentional fraud in carrying out the
188	provisions of this section.
189	(3)
190	(d)  Whenever the department receives a legally sufficient
191	complaint alleging that a licensee or applicant is impaired as
192	described in paragraph (a) and no complaint against the licensee
193	or applicant other than impairment exists, the board from which
194	the license was granted or is sought, the board's designee, or
195	the department shall forward all information in its possession
196	regarding the impaired licensee or applicant to the consultant.
197	For the purposes of this section, a suspension from hospital
198	staff privileges due to the impairment does not constitute a
199	complaint.
200	(7)
201	(b)  In accordance with s. 284.385, the Department of
202	Financial Services shall defend any claim, suit, action, or
203	proceeding, including a claim, suit, action, or proceeding for
204	injunctive, affirmative, or declaratory relief, against the
205	consultant, the consultant's officers or employees, or those
206	acting at the direction of the consultant for the limited
207	purpose of an emergency intervention on behalf of a licensee or
208	student as described in subsection (2) when the consultant is
209	unable to perform such intervention which is brought as a result
210	of any act or omission by any of the consultant's officers and
211	employees and those acting under the direction of the consultant
212	for the limited purpose of an emergency intervention on behalf
213	of a licensee or student as described in subsection (2) when the
214	consultant is unable to perform such intervention when such act
215	or omission arises out of and in the scope of the consultant's
216	duties under its contract with the department.
217	(8)  An impaired practitioner consultant is the official
218	custodian of records concerning any impaired licensee monitored
219	by that consultant. The consultant may not, except to the extent
220	necessary for carrying out the consultant's duties under this
221	section, disclose to the impaired licensee or his or her
222	designee any information that is disclosed to or obtained by the
223	consultant and is confidential under paragraph (5)(a). If a
224	disciplinary proceeding is pending, an impaired licensee may
225	obtain such information from the department under s.
226	456.073(10).
227	Section 6.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2011.

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