The Florida Senate

385.103  Chronic disease control program.--

(1)  DEFINITIONS.--As used in this act:

(a)  "Chronic disease control program" means a program including at least the following elements:

1.  Health screening;

2.  Risk factor detection;

3.  Appropriate intervention to enable and encourage risk factor reversal; and

4.  Nutrition counseling.

(b)  "Community health education program" means a program involving the planned and coordinated use of the educational resources available in a community in an effort to:

1.  Motivate and assist citizens to adopt and maintain healthful practices and lifestyles;

2.  Make available learning opportunities which will increase the ability of people to make informed decisions affecting their personal, family, and community well-being and which are designed to facilitate voluntary adoption of behavior which will improve or maintain health;

3.  Reduce, through coordination among appropriate agencies, duplication of health education efforts; and

4.  Facilitate collaboration among appropriate agencies for efficient use of scarce resources.

(c)  "Comprehensive health improvement project" means a program combining the required elements of both a chronic disease control program and a community health education program into a unified program over which a single administrative entity has authority and responsibility.

(d)  "Department" means the Department of Health.

(e)  "District" means a service district of the department.

(f)  "Risk factor" means a factor identified during the course of an epidemiological study of a disease, which factor appears to be statistically associated with a high incidence of that disease.

(2)  OPERATION OF COMPREHENSIVE HEALTH IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS.--

(a)  The department shall assist the county health departments in developing and operating comprehensive health improvement projects throughout the state. At a minimum, the comprehensive health improvement projects shall address the chronic diseases of cancer, diabetes, heart disease, hypertension, renal disease, and chronic obstructive lung disease.

(b)  Existing community resources, when available, shall be used to support the programs. The department shall seek funding for the programs from federal and state financial assistance programs which presently exist or which may be hereafter created. Additional services, as appropriate, may be incorporated into a program to the extent that resources are available. The department may accept gifts and grants in order to carry out a program.

(c)  Volunteers shall be used to the maximum extent possible in carrying out the programs. The department shall contract for the necessary insurance coverage to protect volunteers from personal liability while acting within the scope of their volunteer assignments under a program.

(d)  The department may contract for the provision of all or any portion of the services required by a program, and shall so contract whenever the services so provided are more cost-efficient than those provided by the department.

(e)  If the department determines that it is necessary for clients to help pay for services provided by a program, the department may require clients to make contribution therefor in either money or personal services. The amount of money or value of the personal services shall be fixed according to a fee schedule established by the department or by the entity developing the program. In establishing the fee schedule, the department or the entity developing the program shall take into account the expenses and resources of a client and his or her overall ability to pay for the services.

(f)  The department shall adopt rules governing the operation of the community health improvement projects. These rules shall include guidelines for intake and enrollment of clients into the projects.

History.--ss. 1, 2, ch. 78-331; s. 5, ch. 82-213; ss. 7, 94, ch. 86-220; s. 3, ch. 92-174; s. 7, ch. 93-200; s. 4, ch. 93-267; s. 70, ch. 95-143; s. 683, ch. 95-148; s. 68, ch. 97-101.

Note.--Former s. 381.605.