Florida Senate - 2024 SB 900
By Senator Rodriguez
40-00478-24 2024900__
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to fees; amending s. 462.005, F.S.;
3 requiring the Board of Naturopathic Medicine to
4 establish certain fees; amending ss. 462.007 and
5 462.008, F.S.; providing for fees for licensure by
6 examination and licensure by endorsement,
7 respectively, of naturopathic physicians; amending s.
8 462.009, F.S.; providing for licensure renewal fees;
9 amending s. 462.011, F.S.; conforming a provision to
10 changes made by the act; amending s. 462.012, F.S.;
11 authorizing the board to set by rule certain fees
12 related to inactive licenses and reactivation of
13 licensure; providing a contingent effective date.
14
15 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
16
17 Section 1. Section 462.023, Florida Statutes, as renumbered
18 as section 462.005, Florida Statutes, and amended by SB 898,
19 2024 Regular Session, is amended to read:
20 462.005 Rulemaking authority; powers and duties of the
21 board.—The board may adopt rules pursuant to ss. 120.536(1) and
22 120.54 to implement the provisions of this chapter conferring
23 duties upon it and to carry out the purposes of this chapter,
24 and may initiate disciplinary action as provided by this
25 chapter, and shall establish fees based on its estimates of the
26 revenue required to administer this chapter, which fees may not
27 exceed the fee amounts provided in this chapter.
28 Section 2. Subsection (1) of section 462.007, Florida
29 Statutes, as created by SB 898, 2024 Regular Session, is amended
30 to read:
31 462.007 Licensure by examination.—
32 (1) Any person desiring to be licensed as a naturopathic
33 physician must apply to the department on forms furnished by the
34 department. The department shall license each applicant who
35 completes the application form and remits a nonrefundable fee
36 not to exceed $2,000, as set by the board, and who the board
37 certifies has met all of the following criteria:
38 (a) Is at least 21 years of age.
39 (b) Has received a bachelor’s degree from one of the
40 following:
41 1. A college or university accredited by an accrediting
42 agency recognized by the United States Department of Education
43 or the Council for Higher Education Accreditation or its
44 successor entity.
45 2. A college or university in Canada which is a member of
46 Universities Canada.
47 3. A college or university in a foreign country and has
48 provided evidence that her or his educational credentials are
49 deemed equivalent to those provided in this country. To have
50 educational credentials deemed equivalent, the applicant must
51 provide her or his foreign educational credentials, including
52 transcripts, course descriptions or syllabi, and diplomas, to a
53 nationally recognized educational credential evaluating agency
54 approved by the board for the evaluation and determination of
55 equivalency of the foreign educational credentials.
56 (c) Has received a naturopathic doctoral degree from a
57 college or program accredited by the Council on Naturopathic
58 Medical Education or another accrediting agency recognized by
59 the United States Department of Education.
60 (d) Is physically and mentally fit to practice as a
61 naturopathic physician.
62 (e) Is of good moral character and has not:
63 1. Committed any act or offense in this or any other
64 jurisdiction which would constitute the basis for disciplining a
65 naturopathic physician pursuant to s. 462.017.
66 2. Had an application for licensure in any profession
67 denied or had her or his license to practice any profession
68 revoked or suspended by any other state, district, or territory
69 of the United States or another country for reasons that relate
70 to her or his ability to practice skillfully and safely as a
71 naturopathic physician.
72 3. Been found guilty of a felony.
73
74 The board and the department shall ensure that applicants for
75 licensure meet the criteria of this paragraph by independently
76 verifying the provided information through the department’s
77 investigative process.
78 (f) Has submitted to the department a set of fingerprints
79 on a form and in accordance with procedures specified by the
80 department under s. 456.039(4), along with payment in an amount
81 equal to the costs incurred by the department for the criminal
82 background check of the applicant.
83 (g) Has demonstrated compliance with the financial
84 responsibility requirements imposed under s. 462.015.
85 (h) Has obtained a passing score, as determined by board
86 rule, on Part I - Biomedical Science Examination, Part II - Core
87 Clinical Science Examination, and Part II - Clinical Elective
88 Pharmacology Examination of the competency-based national
89 Naturopathic Physician Licensing Examination administered by the
90 North American Board of Naturopathic Examiners, or an equivalent
91 examination offered by an equivalent or successor entity, as
92 approved by the board.
93 Section 3. Subsection (1) of section 462.008, Florida
94 Statutes, as created by SB 898, 2024 Regular Session, is amended
95 to read:
96 462.008 Licensure by endorsement.—
97 (1) Any person licensed to practice naturopathic medicine
98 in another state or territory of the United States or in Canada
99 who desires to be licensed as a naturopathic physician in this
100 state must apply to the department on forms furnished by the
101 department. The department shall issue a license by endorsement
102 to any applicant who completes the application form and remits a
103 nonrefundable fee not to exceed $2,000, as determined by the
104 board, and who the board certifies has met all of the following
105 criteria:
106 (a) Has met the qualifications for licensure established in
107 s. 462.007(1)(a)-(g).
108 (b)1. Has submitted evidence of holding an active license
109 to practice naturopathic medicine in another state or territory
110 of the United States or in Canada for at least the 5 years
111 immediately preceding the filing of her or his application; or
112 2. If an applicant has held an active license to practice
113 naturopathic medicine in another state or territory of the
114 United States or in Canada for less than the 5 years immediately
115 preceding the filing of her or his application, has obtained a
116 passing score on the national licensing examination, as
117 specified in s. 462.007(1)(h), within the year immediately
118 preceding the filing of the application.
119 Section 4. Subsection (1) of section 462.08, Florida
120 Statutes, as renumbered as section 462.009, Florida Statutes,
121 and amended by SB 898, 2024 Regular Session, is amended to read:
122 462.009 Renewal of license to practice naturopathic
123 medicine.—
124 (1) In order to continue practicing naturopathic medicine
125 in this state, each licensed naturopathic physician must
126 biennially renew her or his license to practice naturopathic
127 medicine. The applicant for license renewal must furnish to the
128 board such evidence as it requires of the applicant’s compliance
129 with s. 462.011, relating to continuing education requirements,
130 and s. 462.015, relating to financial responsibility
131 requirements. The biennial renewal fee, the amount of which
132 shall be determined by the board but may not exceed $1,000, must
133 be paid at the time the application for license renewal is
134 filed.
135 Section 5. Subsection (1) of section 462.18, Florida
136 Statutes, as renumbered as section 462.011, Florida Statutes,
137 and amended by SB 898, 2024 Regular Session, is amended to read:
138 462.011 Continuing education requirements.—
139 (1) At the time each licensee renews her or his license as
140 provided in s. 462.009, each licensee must, in addition to the
141 payment of the regular renewal fee, furnish to the board
142 satisfactory evidence that, in the preceding biennial period,
143 the licensee has completed the continuing education requirements
144 of this section.
145 Section 6. Section 462.19, Florida Statutes, as renumbered
146 as section 462.012, Florida Statutes, and amended by SB 898,
147 2024 Regular Session, is amended to read:
148 462.012 Inactive status; reactivation of license.—
149 (1) A licensee may reactivate an inactive license by
150 applying to the department, paying any applicable fees, and
151 submitting proof of compliance with the financial responsibility
152 requirements of s. 462.015.
153 (2) The board shall adopt rules relating to reactivation of
154 licenses that have become inactive and for the renewal of
155 inactive licenses. The rules must include continuing education
156 requirements as a condition of reactivating a license. The
157 continuing education requirements for reactivating a license may
158 not be fewer than 20 classroom hours for each year the license
159 was inactive. The board may also adopt rules to set fees,
160 including a fee for placing a license into inactive status, a
161 biennial renewal fee for licenses in inactive status, a
162 delinquency fee, and a fee for the reactivation of a license.
163 None of these fees may exceed the biennial renewal fee
164 established by the board in s. 462.009.
165 (3) The department may not reactivate a license unless the
166 applicable fees have been paid and the financial responsibility
167 requirements of s. 462.015 have been satisfied.
168 Section 7. This act shall take effect on the same date that
169 SB 898 or similar legislation takes effect, if such legislation
170 is adopted in the same legislative session or an extension
171 thereof and becomes a law.