The Florida Nurse - May 2022

Page 8 The Florida Nurse May 2022
Legislative Update
The Florida Legislature adjourned, Sine Die on March 14th at 1:03 pm.
In an unusual year, filled with uncertainty, the
Florida Legislature had only two constitutionally
required tasks: 1) to pass a balanced budget, as is
required every year, and 2) to pass House, Senate and
Congressional maps.
These tasks must be completed within the 60-
day regular session, and even with more money
than the state has seen in recent years to work
with, the two chambers were forced to extend
three days past the sixty-day mark, March 11th, in
order to allow for the 72-hour cooling off period for
the budget.
This year 3,735 bills and proposed committee bills
were filed. 1,896 total amendments were filed. There
were 39 floor sessions (times the Chambers sat on the
floor). 4,324 votes were taken in all committees and
floor sessions that allowed for 285 bills to pass both
chambers.
FNA followed a total of 105 bills this session. 53
bills became priorities, and out of those priorities
seven passed. One of those bills was supported by
the FNA, the others became bills for monitoring.
Below are few of the bills we monitored and their
status. A Legislative Session Wrap-Up was presented
for FNA members on March 14, 2022. To watch
the recording, go to https://www.floridanurse.org/
news/600265/2022-Legislative-Session-Wrap-Up.
htm.
SB 7014 COVID-19-related Claims Against Health
Care Providers by Judiciary
- Extending the duration of liability protections
from COVID-19-related claims against health
care providers, etc.
- FNA Supported this Bill
- Status: APPROVED by Governor
SB 1686 Autonomous Practice by Advanced Practice
Registered Nurses by Rodriguez (A)
- Requiring certified nurse midwives providing
out-of-hospital birth services to have a
written plan for the appropriate delivery of
emergency care; providing requirements for
the plan; deleting a requirement that certified
nurse midwives have a written patient transfer
agreement with a hospital and a written referral
agreement with a licensed physician, etc.
- FNA Supported this Bill
- Status: Died
HB 687 - Free Speech of Health Care Practitioners
by Representative Brad Drake and SB 1184 by
Senator Doug Broxson
- Prohibits certain entities from revoking license,
certificate, or registration of health care practitioner
for specified use of his or her right of free speech
without specified proof; provides liability & penalty.
- FNA Monitored this Bill
- Status: Died
HB 1197 Employee Organizations Representing
Public Employees by Byrd, Plakon
- Revises provisions related to employee organizations
including organizations for public employees, forms,
dues & uniform assessments, applications for
renewal of registration, recertification, & revocation
of registration & certification.
- FNA Opposed this Bill
- Status: Died
SB 1458 Employee Organizations by Baxley
- Employee Organizations; Requiring employee
organizations to provide a notice of employees’
rights form to specified employees; requiring an
employee organization to revoke an employee’s
membership upon receipt of the employee’s written
request for revocation; prohibiting certain employee
organizations from having dues and uniform
assessments deducted by the employer from
certain employees’ salaries; revising requirements
for applications for renewal of registration of an
employee organization; revising requirements
for applications for renewals of registration for
employee organizations certified as bargaining
agents for units of instructional personnel, etc.
- FNA Opposed this Bill
- Status: Died
HB 4725 - University of South Florida - Florida
Center for Nursing- Representative Kamia Brown
(Orlando)
- University of South Florida - Florida Center
for Nursing: Provides an appropriation for the
University of South Florida - Florida Center for
Nursing.
- FNA Supported this Bill
- Status: $5,000,000 allocated in the budget
towards the Florida Center for Nursing. At the
time of this report we are still awaiting approval
of the budget.
We are currently planning for the next few
months by encouraging members to make contact
with their legislator. These are the steps we ask
you to take to make sure we maintain and build
relationships with your local policy makers
1. Go to our website at www.floridanurse.org
and click on the Advocacy button on the
menu. Navigate to Tools and find the “Find
My Legislator” Button. Enter your address
with zip code to find your legislators.
2. Focus on Florida State Senator and
Representatives. Write down your
legislators’ names, address, phone number
and email.
3. Also make notes of other interesting facts
like birthday, schools or colleges, pets or any
other items of interest that may be common
interests or could spark a conversation.
4. Set 3 more dates before the end of the year
to touch base with the legislator.
a. What do you talk about?
i. Introduce yourself and tell them
about the area of nursing you work
in.
ii. Introduce FNA’s legislative agenda
and offer to email it to them.
iii. Try to answer any questions they
might have if you do not know the
answer, tell them you will get back
to them. Contact FNA headquarters
with your question.
iv. Please do not introduce non-FNA
issues during these calls but feel free
to advocate for other issues on your
own time.
v. Report these visits back to us by
completing a Legislative Feedback
Form at https://www.floridanurse.
org/page/LegFeedbackForm
The importance of these calls (or face to face
visits during the off-session months) is so we
have a relationship with every legislator in Florida
regardless of party affiliation.
Bradenton, Gainesville, Lecanto, Live Oak, Orange Park, Palatka,
Pasco, Sarasota, Tampa, and The Villages