HB 1061

1	A bill to be entitled
2	An act relating to the treatment of stroke; creating s.
3	395.3044, F.S.; providing legislative findings; providing
4	definitions; providing duties for the Agency for Health
5	Care Administration with regard to the statewide system
6	for stroke response and treatment; requiring the agency to
7	establish the Stroke Task Force; requiring the Secretary
8	of Health Care Administration to appoint the members of
9	the Stroke Task Force; providing the membership for the
10	task force; requiring the agency and the task force to
11	require specified health care facilities to report certain
12	data; providing additional duties of the task force;
13	requiring primary and comprehensive stroke centers and
14	certain medical facilities to report certain data
15	regarding stroke patients to a private, tier-one research
16	university in this state; requiring that the private,
17	tier-one research university store and maintain the
18	reported data and compiled information and statistics in a
19	registry; providing that the implementation of the
20	registry is contingent upon the availability of funding;
21	requiring the private tier-one research university to use
22	a specified data platform for the registry; requiring the
23	private tier-one research university to coordinate with
24	national voluntary health organizations that are involved
25	in quality improvement of stroke patients; providing for
26	health care information collected in the registry to be
27	released only under certain conditions; requiring the
28	agency and the task force to submit a report to the
29	Governor, the Legislature, and the State Surgeon General;
30	providing that the act does not restrict a hospital from
31	providing services for which it is licensed to provide;
32	requiring the agency to adopt rules; providing an
33	effective date.
34
35	WHEREAS, stroke is the third leading killer in the United
36	States and in Florida, and
37	WHEREAS, stroke is a leading cause of serious long-term
38	disability in this state, and
39	WHEREAS, an estimated 780,000 new and recurrent strokes
40	occur each year in this country, and
41	WHEREAS, the number of persons having strokes is projected
42	to increase as the population ages, and
43	WHEREAS, this year in Florida more than 50,000 people will
44	fall victim to a potentially treatable stroke, and
45	WHEREAS, more than 8,000 Floridians will die from stroke-
46	related complications, and
47	WHEREAS, increased quality improvement measures serve to
48	provide for increased positive patient outcomes, and
49	WHEREAS, understanding the care received by each stroke
50	patient will assist in quickly achieving these improved patient
51	outcomes, NOW, THEREFORE,
52
53	Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
54
55	Section 1.  Section 395.3044, Florida Statutes, is created
56	to read:
57	395.3044  Stroke Prevention Act.-
58	(1)  LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS.-
59	(a)  The rapid identification, diagnosis, and treatment of
60	a stroke can save the life of a stroke patient and, in some
61	cases, can reverse neurological damage, such as paralysis and
62	speech and language impairments, leaving the stroke patient with
63	few or no neurological deficits.
64	(b)  The Legislature further finds that the large number of
65	stroke-related loss of life and viability creates an annual
66	financial burden for the state of more than $1.2 billion in
67	medical costs, supportive care, and lost productivity.
68	(2)  DEFINITIONS.-As used in this section, the term:
69	(a)  "National Quality Forum" means a nonprofit
70	organization that operates under a three-part mission to improve
71	the quality of health care in the United States by:
72	1.  Building consensus on national priorities and goals for
73	performance improvement and working in partnership to achieve
74	them;
75	2.  Endorsing national consensus standards for measuring
76	and publicly reporting on performance; and
77	3.  Promoting the attainment of national goals through
78	education and outreach programs.
79	(b)  "Statewide system for stroke response and treatment"
80	means the process in which a stroke patient in this state is
81	quickly identified and transported to and treated in a primary
82	stroke center, a comprehensive stroke center, or a medical
83	facility that is licensed by the agency, except a pediatric
84	hospital, a critical access hospital, a psychiatric hospital, or
85	an agency that offers emergency medical services.
86	(c)  "Joint Commission" means an independent, not-for-
87	profit organization that accredits and certifies health care
88	organizations and programs in the United States. The Joint
89	Commission's accreditation and certification is recognized
90	nationwide as a symbol of quality that reflects an
91	organization's commitment to meeting certain standards of
92	performance. The Joint Commission was formerly the Joint
93	Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations.
94	(3)  DUTIES.-The agency shall establish and implement a
95	plan for achieving continuous improvement in the quality of care
96	provided under the statewide system for stroke response and
97	treatment. In implementing this plan, the agency shall:
98	(a)  Require the application of guidelines for evidence-
99	based treatment which align with guidelines of the nationally
100	approved National Quality Forum for the treatment and discharge
101	of patients.
102	(b)  Establish a Stroke Task Force to assist in
103	implementing the plan for achieving continuous improvement in
104	the quality of care provided under the statewide system for
105	stroke response and treatment.
106	1.  The Secretary for Health Care Administration shall
107	appoint the following 13 members to the Stroke Task Force:
108	a.  The State Surgeon General or his or her designee;
109	b.  The director of the Office of Public Health Research
110	within the Department of Health or his or her designee;
111	c.  A neurologist licensed to practice medicine in this
112	state;
113	d.  A designee from the American Stroke Association;
114	e.  A member of the Florida College of Emergency
115	Physicians;
116	f.  A member of the Florida Hospital Association;
117	g.  A member of a large metropolitan hospital in this
118	state;
119	h.  A representative from the Rural Health Association or
120	the Rural Hospital Association;
121	i.  A designee from the Medicare Quality Improvement
122	Organization for this state;
123	j.  A person who is certified in this state as an emergency
124	medical technician or paramedic;
125	k.  An epidemiologist from a state college or university;
126	l.  A registered nurse who treats stroke patients; and
127	m.  A person who represents rehabilitative services for
128	stroke survivors.
129	2.  The Stroke Task Force shall:
130	a.  Analyze the data and information maintained and stored
131	by the private, tier-one research university in a registry as
132	provided in subsection (4).
133	b.  Identify potential interventions to improve care for
134	stroke patients who live in certain geographic areas or regions
135	of the state.
136	c.  Provide recommendations to the agency and the
137	Legislature for improving the delivery of health care services
138	to former and current stroke patients in the state.
139	(4)  REGISTRY.-
140	(a)1.  Each primary and comprehensive stroke center and
141	each medical facility that is licensed by the agency, except a
142	pediatric hospital, a critical access hospital, a psychiatric
143	hospital, or an agency that offers emergency medical services,
144	shall report to a private, tier-one research university in this
145	state data, including, but not limited to, discharge
146	destinations, which are consistent with nationally recognized
147	guidelines on the treatment of individuals who suffered a
148	confirmed stroke within the statewide system for stroke response
149	and treatment. The private, tier-one research university shall
150	compile information and statistics on care for stroke patients
151	which align with the stroke consensus metrics developed and
152	approved by the American Heart Association/American Stroke
153	Association, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and
154	the Joint Commission and shall store and maintain this compiled
155	information and statistics and the reported data in a registry.
156	2.  The registry and the private, tier-one research
157	university's implementation thereof are contingent upon the
158	availability of funds.
159	(b)  The private, tier-one research university shall use
160	the American Heart Association's program known as "Get With The
161	Guidelines-Stroke" as the data platform for the registry or
162	another nationally recognized data platform that has standards
163	for confidentiality that are equally secure.
164	(c)  To the extent possible, the private, tier-one research
165	university shall coordinate with national voluntary health
166	organizations involved in quality improvement of stroke patients
167	in order to avoid duplication of efforts.
168	(5)  RELEASE OF INFORMATION.-Health care data and other
169	information collected in the registry may be released only in
170	accordance with written agreements and subject to the
171	confidentiality provisions required under s. 25(b), Art. X of
172	the State Constitution, s. 381.028(6), and by other relevant
173	state and federal laws.
174	(6)  ANNUAL REPORT.-By July 1, 2012, and annually
175	thereafter, the agency and the Stroke Task Force shall submit a
176	report to the Governor, the President of the Senate, the Speaker
177	of the House of Representatives, and the State Surgeon General
178	on the progress made toward improving the quality of care and
179	patient outcomes under the statewide system for stroke response
180	and treatment.
181	(7)  MEDICAL TREATMENT OF PATIENTS.-This section is not a
182	guideline for medical practice and does not restrict the
183	authority of a hospital to provide services for which it has
184	received a license under state law. The Legislature intends that
185	all patients be treated individually based on each patient's
186	needs and circumstances.
187	(8)  RULES.-The agency shall adopt rules to administer this
188	section.
189	Section 2.  This act shall take effect upon becoming a law.

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.