Florida Senate - 2018                              CS for SB 138
       
       
        
       By the Committee on Appropriations; and Senators Book, Hutson,
       and Perry
       
       
       
       
       576-03810-18                                           2018138c1
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to perinatal mental health; providing
    3         a short title; creating s. 383.014, F.S.; requiring
    4         the Department of Health to establish and maintain a
    5         toll-free hotline accessible to the general public and
    6         a toll-free hotline accessible to health care
    7         providers; requiring the department to create public
    8         service announcements to educate the public on
    9         perinatal mental health care; requiring the department
   10         to encourage certain health care providers to attend
   11         continuing medical education courses on perinatal
   12         mental health care; amending s. 383.318, F.S.;
   13         revising components that are included in the
   14         postpartum evaluation and followup care required to be
   15         provided by birth centers to include a mental health
   16         screening and the provision of certain information on
   17         postpartum depression; amending s. 395.1053, F.S.;
   18         requiring hospitals that provide birthing services to
   19         provide the same postpartum evaluation and followup
   20         care that is required to be provided by birth centers;
   21         providing an appropriation, providing an effective
   22         date.
   23  
   24         WHEREAS, the Alachua County Perinatal Mental Health
   25  Coalition released its 2017 Maternal Mental Health Needs
   26  Assessment, which found that perinatal mental illness is the
   27  leading health complication related to pregnancy and birth, and
   28         WHEREAS, as many as 1 in 5 mothers nationally will
   29  experience Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Disorder (PMD), and
   30         WHEREAS, as many as 1 in 10 fathers will also experience
   31  symptoms of PMD, and
   32         WHEREAS, Florida loses approximately $900 million annually
   33  because of the failure to recognize and treat perinatal mental
   34  illnesses, and
   35         WHEREAS, approximately 44,000 Florida babies are born
   36  annually to a parent experiencing a perinatal mental illness,
   37  and those babies may experience social, emotional, and cognitive
   38  detriments if their affected parent does not have access to
   39  proper care or receive treatment, NOW, THEREFORE,
   40  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   41  
   42         Section 1. This act may be cited as the “Florida Families
   43  First Act.”
   44         Section 2. Section 383.014, Florida Statutes, is created to
   45  read:
   46         383.014Perinatal mental health care.—By January 1, 2019,
   47  the Department of Health shall:
   48         (1) Establish and maintain a perinatal mental health care
   49  toll-free hotline, accessible to the general public, which:
   50         (a) Provides basic information on postpartum depression and
   51  perinatal care;
   52         (b) May recommend that a caller or patient be further
   53  evaluated by a qualified health care provider; and
   54         (c) May refer a caller or patient to an appropriate health
   55  care provider in the caller’s or patient’s local area.
   56         (2) Establish and maintain a perinatal mental health care
   57  provider toll-free hotline for health care providers, as defined
   58  in s. 408.07, which:
   59         (a) Provides information to assist health care providers in
   60  addressing the mental health of a pregnant or postpartum
   61  patient;
   62         (b) Maintains and offers the contact information of health
   63  care providers throughout the state who have experience in
   64  caring for pregnant or postpartum patients; and
   65         (c) Compiles resources to encourage the efficient and
   66  coordinated care of pregnant or postpartum patients.
   67         (3) Create public service announcements (PSAs) to educate
   68  the public on perinatal mental health care. The PSAs must
   69  include the telephone number of the perinatal mental health care
   70  hotline established in subsection (1).
   71         (4) Encourage mental health care providers, and health care
   72  providers who conduct postpartum evaluations or treat postpartum
   73  patients, to attend continuing medical education courses on
   74  perinatal mental health care.
   75         Section 3. Subsection (3) of section 383.318, Florida
   76  Statutes, is amended to read:
   77         383.318 Postpartum care for birth center clients and
   78  infants.—
   79         (3) The birth center shall provide a postpartum evaluation
   80  and followup care that includes all of the following shall be
   81  provided, which shall include:
   82         (a) Physical examination of the infant.
   83         (b) Metabolic screening tests required by s. 383.14.
   84         (c) Referral to sources for pediatric care.
   85         (d) Maternal postpartum assessment that incorporates mental
   86  health screening.
   87         (e) Information on postpartum depression and the telephone
   88  number of the perinatal mental health care hotline established
   89  in s. 383.014.
   90         (f)(e) Instruction in child care, including immunization,
   91  breastfeeding, safe sleep practices, and possible causes of
   92  Sudden Unexpected Infant Death.
   93         (g)(f) Family planning services.
   94         (h)(g) Referral to secondary or tertiary care, as
   95  indicated.
   96         Section 4. Section 395.1053, Florida Statutes, is amended
   97  to read:
   98         395.1053 Postpartum care and education.—A hospital that
   99  provides birthing services shall provide a postpartum evaluation
  100  and followup care that includes all of the following:
  101         (1) Physical examination of the infant.
  102         (2) Metabolic screening tests required by s. 383.14.
  103         (3) Referral to sources for pediatric care.
  104         (4) Maternal postpartum assessment that incorporates mental
  105  health screening.
  106         (5) Information on postpartum depression and the telephone
  107  number of the perinatal mental health care hotline established
  108  in s. 383.014.
  109         (6) Instruction in child care, including immunization,
  110  breastfeeding, incorporate information on safe sleep practices,
  111  and the possible causes of Sudden Unexpected Infant Death into
  112  the hospital’s postpartum instruction on the care of newborns.
  113         (7) Family planning services.
  114         (8) Referral to secondary or tertiary care, as indicated.
  115         Section 5. For the 2018-2019 fiscal year, the sum of
  116  $1,156,520 from the General Revenue Fund, of which $854,700 is
  117  nonrecurring, is appropriated to the Department of Health for
  118  the purpose of implementing s. 383.014, Florida Statutes.
  119         Section 6. This act shall take effect July 1, 2018.