Florida Senate - 2015                                     SB 438
       
       
        
       By Senator Sobel
       
       
       
       
       
       33-00370A-15                                           2015438__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to palliative care; creating s.
    3         381.825, F.S.; defining terms; requiring the
    4         Department of Health to establish a palliative care
    5         consumer and professional information and education
    6         program; specifying the purpose of the program;
    7         requiring the department to publish certain
    8         educational information and referral materials about
    9         palliative care on the department website; authorizing
   10         the department to develop and implement other services
   11         and education initiatives regarding palliative care;
   12         requiring the department to consult with the
   13         Palliative Care and Quality of Life Interdisciplinary
   14         Task Force; creating the Palliative Care and Quality
   15         of Life Interdisciplinary Task Force within the
   16         Department of Health; specifying the purpose of the
   17         task force; providing for membership by a specified
   18         time; requiring the task force to adopt certain
   19         internal organizational procedures; requiring the
   20         department to provide staff, information, and other
   21         assistance, as necessary, to the task force;
   22         authorizing the reimbursement of task force members
   23         for certain expenses; requiring the department to set
   24         regular meeting times for the task force; requiring
   25         the task force to meet at least twice each year;
   26         requiring reports to the Governor, the President of
   27         the Senate, and the Speaker of the House of
   28         Representatives by specified dates; providing for
   29         future repeal of the task force; providing an
   30         effective date.
   31          
   32  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   33  
   34         Section 1. Section 381.825, Florida Statutes, is created to
   35  read:
   36         381.825Palliative care consumer and professional
   37  information and education program.—
   38         (1) As used in this section, the term:
   39         (a) “Appropriate” means consistent with applicable legal,
   40  health, and professional standards; consistent with the
   41  patient’s clinical and other circumstances; and consistent with
   42  the patient’s reasonably known wishes and beliefs.
   43         (b) “Medical care” means services provided, requested, or
   44  supervised by a physician, a physician assistant, or an advanced
   45  registered nurse practitioner.
   46         (c) “Palliative care” means patient- and family-centered
   47  medical care offered throughout the continuum of an illness
   48  which optimizes quality of life by anticipating, preventing, and
   49  treating the suffering caused by a serious illness. Palliative
   50  care involves addressing physical, emotional, social, and
   51  spiritual needs and facilitating patient autonomy, access to
   52  information, and choice. The term includes, but is not limited
   53  to, discussions of the patient’s goals for treatment; discussion
   54  of treatment options appropriate to the patient, including, if
   55  appropriate, hospice care; and comprehensive pain and symptom
   56  management.
   57         (d) “Serious illness” means a medical illness or physical
   58  injury or condition that substantially impacts quality of life
   59  for more than a short period of time. The term includes, but is
   60  not limited to, cancer, renal or liver failure, heart or lung
   61  disease, and Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias.
   62         (2) The department shall establish a palliative care
   63  consumer and professional information and education program. The
   64  purpose of the program is to maximize the effectiveness of
   65  palliative care initiatives in this state by making
   66  comprehensive and accurate information and education about
   67  palliative care available to the public, health care
   68  practitioners, and health care facilities.
   69         (3) The department shall publish on its website information
   70  and resources, including links to external resources, about
   71  palliative care which shall include, but not be limited to,
   72  continuing education opportunities for health care
   73  practitioners; information about palliative care delivery in the
   74  home and in primary, secondary, and tertiary care settings; best
   75  practices for palliative care delivery; and consumer educational
   76  materials and referral information for palliative care,
   77  including hospice.
   78         (4) The department may develop and implement other
   79  initiatives regarding palliative care services and education to
   80  further the purposes of this section.
   81         (5) The department shall consult with the Palliative Care
   82  and Quality of Life Interdisciplinary Task Force in implementing
   83  this section.
   84         Section 2. Palliative Care and Quality of Life
   85  Interdisciplinary Task Force.—There is established within the
   86  Department of Health a Palliative Care and Quality of Life
   87  Interdisciplinary Task Force, which is a task force as defined
   88  in s. 20.03, Florida Statutes.
   89         (1) The primary purpose of the task force is to consult
   90  with and advise the department on matters relating to the
   91  establishment, maintenance, operation, and outcome evaluation of
   92  palliative care initiatives in this state.
   93         (2) The task force shall consist of 11 members, 5 of whom
   94  are appointed by the Governor, 3 of whom are appointed by the
   95  President of the Senate, and 3 of whom are appointed by the
   96  Speaker of the House of Representatives. All appointments shall
   97  be made by December 31, 2015. The task force membership shall
   98  include:
   99         (a) Professionals who have expertise in various aspects of
  100  palliative care, including, but not limited to,
  101  interdisciplinary palliative care; medical, nursing, social
  102  work, pharmacy, and spiritual expertise; and patient and family
  103  caregivers or their advocates. The appointing officials, in
  104  consultation with the State Surgeon General, shall ensure that
  105  representation on the task force reflects a broad perspective of
  106  palliative care in a variety of inpatient, outpatient, and
  107  community settings, such as acute care, long-term care, and
  108  hospice, and with a variety of populations, including pediatric,
  109  youth, and adult.
  110         (b) One member who is a designee of the American Cancer
  111  Society, appointed by the Governor.
  112         (c) One member who is a designee of the Florida Hospice and
  113  Palliative Care Association, appointed by the Governor.
  114         (d) One member who is a designee of the Department of
  115  Veterans’ Affairs, appointed by the Governor.
  116         (e) At least two members who are board-certified hospice
  117  and palliative medicine physicians, physician assistants, or
  118  nurses, one appointed by the President of the Senate and one
  119  appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives.
  120         (3) The task force shall adopt internal organizational
  121  procedures as necessary for its efficient organization which
  122  must, at a minimum, require the task force to elect a chair and
  123  vice chair whose duties shall be established by the task force.
  124         (4) The department shall provide such staff, information,
  125  and other assistance as are reasonably necessary to assist the
  126  task force in carrying out its responsibilities.
  127         (5) Members of the task force shall serve without
  128  compensation, but may receive reimbursement as provided in s.
  129  112.061, Florida Statutes, for travel and other necessary
  130  expenses incurred in the performance of their official duties.
  131         (6) The department shall establish a time and place for
  132  regular meetings of the task force, which shall meet at least
  133  twice a year.
  134         (7) The task force shall submit a preliminary report to the
  135  Governor, the President of the Senate, and the Speaker of the
  136  House of Representatives by January 15, 2017, detailing its
  137  recommendations for the establishment, maintenance, operation,
  138  and outcome evaluation of palliative care initiatives in this
  139  state and its recommendation for any statutory changes to be
  140  considered by the Legislature. The task force shall also submit
  141  a followup report to the Governor, the President of the Senate,
  142  and the Speaker of the House of Representatives by December 31,
  143  2018, detailing the implementation, by the department or by
  144  legislative action, of the recommendations in the preliminary
  145  report.
  146         (8) This section expires December 31, 2018.
  147         Section 3. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law.