Bill Text: FL S1518 | 2019 | Regular Session | Comm Sub

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Bill Title: Alternative Treatment Options for Veterans

Spectrum:

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2019-05-01 - Laid on Table, companion bill(s) passed, see CS/CS/HB 501 (Ch. 2019-148) [S1518 Detail]

Download: Florida-2019-S1518-Comm_Sub.html

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       Florida Senate - 2019                      CS for CS for SB 1518
       
       
        
       By the Committees on Appropriations; and Health Policy; and
       Senators Wright, Book, and Cruz
       
       
       
       
       576-04601-19                                          20191518c2
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to alternative treatment options for
    3         veterans; creating s. 295.156, F.S.; providing
    4         definitions; authorizing the Department of Veterans’
    5         Affairs, subject to appropriation, to contract with a
    6         state university or Florida College System institution
    7         to furnish specified alternative treatment options for
    8         certain veterans; providing requirements as to the
    9         provision of alternative treatment options and related
   10         assessment data; specifying eligibility to receive
   11         alternative treatment; requiring direction and
   12         supervision by certain licensed providers; requiring
   13         the department to annually prepare a report for
   14         submission to the Governor and Legislature;
   15         authorizing the department to adopt rules; providing
   16         an effective date.
   17          
   18  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   19  
   20         Section 1. Section 295.156, Florida Statutes, is created to
   21  read:
   22         295.156 Alternative treatment options for veterans.—
   23         (1) As used in this section, the term:
   24         (a) “Posttraumatic stress disorder” means a mental health
   25  disorder that is developed after having experienced or witnessed
   26  a life-threatening event, including but not limited to, military
   27  sexual trauma.
   28         (b) “Traumatic brain injury” means an acquired injury to
   29  the brain. This term does not include brain dysfunction caused
   30  by congenital or degenerative disorders or by birth trauma.
   31         (2) Subject to legislative appropriation, the Department of
   32  Veterans’ Affairs may contract with a state university or
   33  Florida College System institution to furnish alternative
   34  treatment options for veterans who have been certified by the
   35  United States Department of Veterans Affairs or any branch of
   36  the United States Armed Forces as having a traumatic brain
   37  injury or posttraumatic stress disorder. The university or
   38  institution shall manage, monitor, and ensure the compliance of
   39  contracted providers who provide any of the following
   40  alternative treatment options:
   41         (a) Accelerated resolution therapy.
   42         (b) Equine therapy.
   43         (c) Hyperbaric oxygen therapy, which must be provided at a
   44  registered hyperbaric oxygen facility.
   45         (d) Music therapy.
   46         (e) Service animal training therapy.
   47         (3) A veteran qualifies to receive alternative treatment
   48  under this section if he or she:
   49         (a) Has been diagnosed by a health care practitioner with
   50  service-connected posttraumatic stress disorder or a traumatic
   51  brain injury;
   52         (b) Voluntarily agrees to such alternative treatment; and
   53         (c) Can demonstrate that he or she has previously sought
   54  services for a posttraumatic stress disorder or a traumatic
   55  brain injury through the federal Veterans Affairs service
   56  delivery system or through private health insurance, if such
   57  coverage is available to the veteran.
   58         (4)(a) The provision of alternative treatment must be under
   59  the direction and supervision of an individual licensed under
   60  chapter 458, chapter 459, chapter 460, chapter 464, chapter 490,
   61  or chapter 491.
   62         (b) The supervising licensed provider must agree to
   63  cooperate with the Department of Veterans’ Affairs to provide
   64  data sufficient to assess the efficacy of alternative treatment
   65  modalities.
   66         (5) By January 1 of each year, beginning in 2020, the
   67  Department of Veterans’ Affairs shall prepare a report detailing
   68  each alternative treatment provided pursuant to this section,
   69  the provider type, the number of veterans served, and the
   70  treatment outcomes. The department shall submit the report to
   71  the Governor, the President of the Senate, and the Speaker of
   72  the House of Representatives.
   73         (6) The Department of Veterans’ Affairs may adopt rules to
   74  implement this section.
   75         Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2019.