SESSION WATCH
THE BILL ITSELF

CS/SB 68

Health Care Patient Protection

VERSION S 68 c1 · BACK TO THE SUMMARY · OFFICIAL RECORD

underlined language is being added; struck language is being deleted. Line numbers are the Legislature's own — the same ones amendments cite.

Florida Senate - 2026 CS for SB 68 By the Appropriations Committee on Health and Human Services; and Senator Harrell 603-02506-26 202668c1
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to health care patient protection;
3 amending s. 395.1012, F.S.; requiring hospitals with
4 emergency departments to develop and implement
5 policies and procedures and conduct training;
6 requiring hospital emergency departments to designate
7 a pediatric emergency care coordinator and conduct
8 specified assessments; authorizing a hospital with an
9 emergency department to conduct the National Pediatric
10 Readiness Project’s Open Assessment under certain
11 circumstances; amending s. 395.1055, F.S.; requiring
12 the Agency for Health Care Administration to adopt
13 certain rules for comprehensive emergency management
14 plans; requiring the agency, in consultation with the
15 Florida Emergency Medical Services for Children State
16 Partnership Program, to adopt rules that establish
17 minimum standards for pediatric patient care in
18 hospital emergency departments; amending s. 408.05,
19 F.S.; requiring the agency to collect and publish the
20 results of specified assessments submitted by
21 hospitals by specified dates; providing requirements
22 for the collection and publication of the hospitals’
23 assessment scores; providing an effective date.
25 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
27 Section 1. Subsections (6) and (7) are added to section
28 395.1012, Florida Statutes, to read:
29 395.1012 Patient safety.—
30 (6)(a) Each hospital with an emergency department shall:
31 1. Develop and implement policies and procedures for
32 pediatric patient care in the emergency department which reflect
33 evidence-based best practices relating to, at a minimum, all of
34 the following:
35 a. Triage.
36 b. Measuring and recording vital signs.
37 c. Weighing and recording weights in kilograms.
38 d. Calculating medication dosages.
39 e. Use of pediatric instruments.
40 2. Conduct training at least annually on the policies and
41 procedures developed under this subsection. The training must
42 include, at a minimum:
43 a. The use of pediatric instruments, as applicable to each
44 licensure type, using clinical simulation as defined in s.
45 464.003.
46 b. Drills that simulate emergency situations. Each
47 emergency department must conduct drills at least annually.
48 (b) Each hospital emergency department shall:
49 1. Designate a pediatric emergency care coordinator. The
50 pediatric emergency care coordinator must be a physician or a
51 physician assistant licensed under chapter 458 or chapter 459, a
52 nurse licensed under chapter 464, or a paramedic licensed under
53 chapter 401. The pediatric emergency care coordinator is
54 responsible for implementation of and ensuring adherence to the
55 policies and procedures adopted under this subsection.
56 2. Conduct the National Pediatric Readiness Assessment
57 developed by the National Pediatric Readiness Project, in
58 accordance with timelines established by the National Pediatric
59 Readiness Project.
60 (7) Each hospital with an emergency department may conduct
61 the National Pediatric Readiness Project’s Open Assessment
62 during a year in which the National Pediatric Readiness
63 Assessment is not conducted.
64 Section 2. Present subsections (4) through (19) of section
65 395.1055, Florida Statutes, are redesignated as subsections (5)
66 through (20), respectively, a new subsection (4) is added to
67 that section, and paragraph (c) of subsection (1) of that
68 section is amended, to read:
69 395.1055 Rules and enforcement.—
70 (1) The agency shall adopt rules pursuant to ss. 120.536(1)
71 and 120.54 to implement the provisions of this part, which shall
72 include reasonable and fair minimum standards for ensuring that:
73 (c) A comprehensive emergency management plan is prepared
74 and updated annually. Such standards must be included in the
75 rules adopted by the agency after consulting with the Division
76 of Emergency Management. At a minimum, the rules must provide
77 for plan components that address emergency evacuation
78 transportation; adequate sheltering arrangements; postdisaster
79 activities, including emergency power, food, and water;
80 postdisaster transportation; supplies; staffing; emergency
81 equipment; individual identification of residents and transfer
82 of records ; , and responding to family inquiries and the needs of
83 pediatric and neonatal patients . The comprehensive emergency
84 management plan is subject to review and approval by the local
85 emergency management agency. During its review, the local
86 emergency management agency shall ensure that the following
87 agencies, at a minimum, are given the opportunity to review the
88 plan: the Department of Elderly Affairs, the Department of
89 Health, the Agency for Health Care Administration, and the
90 Division of Emergency Management. Also, appropriate volunteer
91 organizations must be given the opportunity to review the plan.
92 The local emergency management agency shall complete its review
93 within 60 days and either approve the plan or advise the
94 facility of necessary revisions.
95 (4) The agency, in consultation with the Florida Emergency
96 Medical Services for Children State Partnership Program, shall
97 adopt rules that establish minimum standards for pediatric
98 patient care in hospital emergency departments, including, but
99 not limited to, availability of and immediate access to
100 pediatric-specific equipment and supplies.
101 Section 3. Paragraph (n) is added to subsection (3) of
102 section 408.05, Florida Statutes, to read:
103 408.05 Florida Center for Health Information and
104 Transparency.—
105 (3) HEALTH INFORMATION TRANSPARENCY.—In order to
106 disseminate and facilitate the availability of comparable and
107 uniform health information, the agency shall perform the
108 following functions:
109 (n)1. Collect the overall assessment score of National
110 Pediatric Readiness Assessments conducted by hospital emergency
111 departments pursuant to s. 395.1012(6) from the Florida
112 Emergency Medical Services for Children State Partnership
113 Program by December 31, 2026, and by December 31 of each year in
114 in which the National Pediatric Readiness Assessment is
115 conducted thereafter.
116 2. By April 1, 2027, and by April 1 following each year in
117 which the National Pediatric Readiness Assessment is conducted
118 thereafter, publish the overall assessment score for each
119 hospital emergency department and provide a comparison to the
120 national average score when it becomes available.
121 3. Collect and publish no more than one overall assessment
122 score per hospital, per year, of assessments conducted pursuant
123 to s. 395.1012(6) and provide a comparison to the hospital
124 emergency department’s most recently published score pursuant to
125 subparagraph 2.
126 Section 4. This act shall take effect July 1, 2026.