Florida Senate - 2025                              CS for SB 998
       
       
        
       By the Committee on Health Policy; and Senator Calatayud
       
       
       
       
       
       588-03142-25                                           2025998c1
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to physician assistant and advanced
    3         practice registered nurse services; amending s.
    4         382.008, F.S.; revising who may file a certificate of
    5         death or fetal death; revising who may note corrected
    6         information on a permanent certificate of death or
    7         fetal death; providing an effective date.
    8          
    9  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   10  
   11         Section 1. Paragraph (a) of subsection (2) and subsections
   12  (3) and (5) of section 382.008, Florida Statutes, are amended to
   13  read:
   14         382.008 Death, fetal death, and nonviable birth
   15  registration.—
   16         (2)(a) The funeral director who first assumes custody of a
   17  dead body or fetus shall electronically file the certificate of
   18  death or fetal death. In the absence of the funeral director,
   19  the physician, physician assistant, advanced practice registered
   20  nurse registered under s. 464.0123, advanced practice registered
   21  nurse providing hospice care pursuant to a written protocol with
   22  a licensed physician, or other person in attendance at or after
   23  the death or the district medical examiner of the county in
   24  which the death occurred or the body was found shall
   25  electronically file the certificate of death or fetal death. The
   26  person who files the certificate shall obtain personal data from
   27  a legally authorized person as described in s. 497.005 or the
   28  best qualified person or source available. The medical
   29  certification of cause of death must be furnished to the funeral
   30  director, either in person or via certified mail or electronic
   31  transfer, by the physician, physician assistant, advanced
   32  practice registered nurse registered under s. 464.0123, advanced
   33  practice registered nurse providing hospice care pursuant to a
   34  written protocol with a licensed physician, or medical examiner
   35  responsible for furnishing such information. For fetal deaths,
   36  the physician, physician assistant, advanced practice registered
   37  nurse registered under s. 464.0123, advanced practice registered
   38  nurse providing hospice care pursuant to a written protocol with
   39  a licensed physician, midwife, or hospital administrator shall
   40  provide any medical or health information to the funeral
   41  director within 72 hours after expulsion or extraction.
   42         (3) Within 72 hours after receipt of a death or fetal death
   43  certificate from the funeral director, the medical certification
   44  of cause of death shall be completed and made available to the
   45  funeral director by the decedent’s primary or attending
   46  practitioner or, if s. 382.011 applies, the district medical
   47  examiner of the county in which the death occurred or the body
   48  was found. The primary or attending practitioner or the medical
   49  examiner shall certify over his or her signature the cause of
   50  death to the best of his or her knowledge and belief. As used in
   51  this section, the term “primary or attending practitioner” means
   52  a physician, a physician assistant, an or advanced practice
   53  registered nurse registered under s. 464.0123, or an advanced
   54  practice registered nurse providing hospice care pursuant to a
   55  written protocol with a licensed physician, who treated the
   56  decedent through examination, medical advice, or medication
   57  during the 12 months preceding the date of death.
   58         (a) The department may grant the funeral director an
   59  extension of time upon a good and sufficient showing of any of
   60  the following conditions:
   61         1. An autopsy is pending.
   62         2. Toxicology, laboratory, or other diagnostic reports have
   63  not been completed.
   64         3. The identity of the decedent is unknown and further
   65  investigation or identification is required.
   66         (b) If the decedent’s primary or attending practitioner or
   67  the district medical examiner of the county in which the death
   68  occurred or the body was found indicates that he or she will
   69  sign and complete the medical certification of cause of death
   70  but will not be available until after the 5-day registration
   71  deadline, the local registrar may grant an extension of 5 days.
   72  If a further extension is required, the funeral director must
   73  provide written justification to the registrar.
   74         (5) A permanent certificate of death or fetal death,
   75  containing the cause of death and any other information that was
   76  previously unavailable, shall be registered as a replacement for
   77  the temporary certificate. The permanent certificate may also
   78  include corrected information if the items being corrected are
   79  noted on the back of the certificate and dated and signed by the
   80  funeral director, physician, physician assistant, advanced
   81  practice registered nurse registered under s. 464.0123, advanced
   82  practice registered nurse providing hospice care pursuant to a
   83  written protocol with a licensed physician, or district medical
   84  examiner of the county in which the death occurred or the body
   85  was found, as appropriate.
   86         Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2025.