Bill Text: FL S1146 | 2015 | Regular Session | Introduced
NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: Agency Relationships with Governmental Health Care Contractors
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Failed) 2015-04-28 - Died in Messages [S1146 Detail]
Download: Florida-2015-S1146-Introduced.html
Bill Title: Agency Relationships with Governmental Health Care Contractors
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Failed) 2015-04-28 - Died in Messages [S1146 Detail]
Download: Florida-2015-S1146-Introduced.html
Florida Senate - 2015 SB 1146 By Senator Simmons 10-00698B-15 20151146__ 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to agency relationships with 3 governmental health care contractors; amending s. 4 766.1115, F.S.; redefining terms; deleting an obsolete 5 date; extending sovereign immunity to employees or 6 agents of a health care provider that executes a 7 contract with a governmental contractor; authorizing 8 such health care provider to collect from a patient, 9 or the parent or guardian of a patient, a nominal fee 10 for administrative costs under certain circumstances; 11 limiting the nominal fee; clarifying that a receipt of 12 specified notice must be acknowledged by a patient or 13 the patient’s representative at the initial visit; 14 requiring the posting of notice that a specified 15 health care provider is an agent of a governmental 16 contractor; amending s. 768.28, F.S.; redefining the 17 term “officer, employee, or agent” to include 18 employees or agents of a health care provider; 19 providing an effective date. 20 21 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 22 23 Section 1. Paragraphs (a) and (d) of subsection (3) and 24 subsections (4) and (5) of section 766.1115, Florida Statutes, 25 are amended to read: 26 766.1115 Health care providers; creation of agency 27 relationship with governmental contractors.— 28 (3) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section, the term: 29 (a) “Contract” means an agreement executed in compliance 30 with this section between a health care provider and a 31 governmental contractor which allows the health care provider, 32 or any employee or agent of the health care provider, to deliver 33 health care services to low-income recipients as an agent of the 34 governmental contractor. The contract must be for volunteer, 35 uncompensated services, except as provided in paragraph (4)(g). 36 For services to qualify as volunteer, uncompensated services 37 under this section, the health care providermust receive no38compensation from the governmental contractor for any services39provided under the contract andmust not bill or accept 40 compensation from the recipient, or a public or private third 41 party payor, for the specific services provided to the low 42 income recipients covered by the contract, except as provided in 43 paragraphs(4)(g) and (h). 44 (d) “Health care provider” or “provider” means: 45 1. A birth center licensed under chapter 383. 46 2. An ambulatory surgical center licensed under chapter 47 395. 48 3. A hospital licensed under chapter 395. 49 4. A physician or physician assistant licensed under 50 chapter 458. 51 5. An osteopathic physician or osteopathic physician 52 assistant licensed under chapter 459. 53 6. A chiropractic physician licensed under chapter 460. 54 7. A podiatric physician licensed under chapter 461. 55 8. A registered nurse, nurse midwife, licensed practical 56 nurse, or advanced registered nurse practitioner licensed or 57 registered under part I of chapter 464 or any facility which 58 employs nurses licensed or registered under part I of chapter 59 464 to supply all or part of the care delivered under this 60 section. 61 9. A midwife licensed under chapter 467. 62 10. A health maintenance organization certificated under 63 part I of chapter 641. 64 11. A health care professional associationand its65employeesor a corporate medical groupand its employees. 66 12. Any other medical facility the primary purpose of which 67 is to deliver human medical diagnostic services or which 68 delivers nonsurgical human medical treatment, and which includes 69 an office maintained by a provider. 70 13. A dentist or dental hygienist licensed under chapter 71 466. 72 14. A free clinic that delivers only medical diagnostic 73 services or nonsurgical medical treatment free of charge to all 74 low-income recipients, except as provided in paragraph (4)(h). 75 15. Any other health care professional, practitioner, 76 provider, or facility under contract with a governmental 77 contractor, including a student enrolled in an accredited 78 program that prepares the student for licensure as any one of 79 the professionals listed in subparagraphs 4.-9. 80 81 The term includes any nonprofit corporation qualified as exempt 82 from federal income taxation under s. 501(a) of the Internal 83 Revenue Code, and described in s. 501(c) of the Internal Revenue 84 Code, which delivers health care services provided by licensed 85 professionals listed in this paragraph, any federally funded 86 community health center, and any volunteer corporation or 87 volunteer health care provider that delivers health care 88 services. 89 (4) CONTRACT REQUIREMENTS.—A health care provider that 90 executes a contract with a governmental contractor to deliver 91 health care serviceson or after April 17, 1992,as an agent of 92 the governmental contractor, or any employee or agent of such 93 health care provider, is an agent for purposes of s. 768.28(9), 94 while acting within the scope of duties under the contract, if 95 the contract complies with the requirements of this section and 96 regardless of whether the individual treated is later found to 97 be ineligible. A health care provider, or any employee or agent 98 of the health care provider, shall continue to be an agent for 99 purposes of s. 768.28(9) for 30 days after a determination of 100 ineligibility to allow for treatment until the individual 101 transitions to treatment by another health care provider. A 102 health care provider under contract with the state, or any 103 employee or agent of such health care provider, may not be named 104 as a defendant in any action arising out of medical care or 105 treatmentprovided on or after April 17, 1992,under contracts 106 entered into under this section. The contract must provide that: 107 (a) The right of dismissal or termination of any health 108 care provider delivering services under the contract is retained 109 by the governmental contractor. 110 (b) The governmental contractor has access to the patient 111 records of any health care provider delivering services under 112 the contract. 113 (c) Adverse incidents and information on treatment outcomes 114 must be reported by any health care provider to the governmental 115 contractor if the incidents and information pertain to a patient 116 treated under the contract. The health care provider shall 117 submit the reports required by s. 395.0197. If an incident 118 involves a professional licensed by the Department of Health or 119 a facility licensed by the Agency for Health Care 120 Administration, the governmental contractor shall submit such 121 incident reports to the appropriate department or agency, which 122 shall review each incident and determine whether it involves 123 conduct by the licensee that is subject to disciplinary action. 124 All patient medical records and any identifying information 125 contained in adverse incident reports and treatment outcomes 126 which are obtained by governmental entities under this paragraph 127 are confidential and exempt from the provisions of s. 119.07(1) 128 and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. 129 (d) Patient selection and initial referral must be made by 130 the governmental contractor or the provider. Patients may not be 131 transferred to the provider based on a violation of the 132 antidumping provisions of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act 133 of 1989, the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1990, or 134 chapter 395. 135 (e) If emergency care is required, the patient need not be 136 referred before receiving treatment, but must be referred within 137 48 hours after treatment is commenced or within 48 hours after 138 the patient has the mental capacity to consent to treatment, 139 whichever occurs later. 140 (f) The provider is subject to supervision and regular 141 inspection by the governmental contractor. 142 (g)As an agent of the governmental contractor for purposes143of s. 768.28(9), while acting within the scope of duties under144the contract,A health care provider licensed under chapter 466, 145 as an agent of the governmental contractor for purposes of s. 146 768.28(9), may allow a patient, or a parent or guardian of the 147 patient, to voluntarily contribute a monetary amount to cover 148 costs of dental laboratory work related to the services provided 149 to the patient within the scope of duties under the contract. 150 This contribution may not exceed the actual cost of the dental 151 laboratory charges. 152 (h) A health care provider, as an agent of the governmental 153 contractor for purposes of s. 768.28(9), may collect from a 154 patient, or a parent or guardian of the patient, a nominal fee 155 for administrative costs related to the services provided to the 156 patient under the contract. For purposes of this paragraph, a 157 nominal fee may not exceed $10. 158 159 A governmental contractor that is also a health care provider is 160 not required to enter into a contract under this section with 161 respect to the health care services delivered by its employees. 162 (5) NOTICE OF AGENCY RELATIONSHIP.—The governmental 163 contractor must provide written notice to each patient, or the 164 patient’s legal representative, receipt of which must be 165 acknowledged in writing at the initial visit, that the provider 166 is an agent of the governmental contractor and that the 167 exclusive remedy for injury or damage suffered as the result of 168 any act or omission of the provider or of any employee or agent 169 thereof acting within the scope of duties pursuant to the 170 contract is by commencement of an action pursuant tothe171provisions ofs. 768.28. Thereafter, and with respect to any 172 federally funded community health center, the notice 173 requirements may be met by posting in a place conspicuous to all 174 persons a notice that the health care providerfederally funded175community health centeris an agent of the governmental 176 contractor and that the exclusive remedy for injury or damage 177 suffered as the result of any act or omission of the provider or 178 of any employee or agent thereof acting within the scope of 179 duties pursuant to the contract is by commencement of an action 180 pursuant tothe provisions ofs. 768.28. 181 Section 2. Paragraph (b) of subsection (9) of section 182 768.28, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 183 768.28 Waiver of sovereign immunity in tort actions; 184 recovery limits; limitation on attorney fees; statute of 185 limitations; exclusions; indemnification; risk management 186 programs.— 187 (9) 188 (b) As used in this subsection, the term: 189 1. “Employee” includes any volunteer firefighter. 190 2. “Officer, employee, or agent” includes, but is not 191 limited to, any health care provider, and its employees or 192 agents, when providing services pursuant to s. 766.1115; any 193 nonprofit independent college or university located and 194 chartered in this state which owns or operates an accredited 195 medical school, and its employees or agents, when providing 196 patient services pursuant to paragraph (10)(f); and any public 197 defender or her or his employee or agent, including, among 198 others, an assistant public defender and an investigator. 199 Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2015.