Bill Text: FL S0328 | 2017 | Regular Session | Comm Sub


Bill Title: Regulation of Nursing

Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2017-05-03 - Laid on Table, companion bill(s) passed, see CS/CS/HB 543 (Ch. 2017-134) [S0328 Detail]

Download: Florida-2017-S0328-Comm_Sub.html
       Florida Senate - 2017                              CS for SB 328
       
       
        
       By the Committee on Health Policy; and Senators Grimsley and
       Perry
       
       
       
       
       588-02417-17                                           2017328c1
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to the regulation of nursing; amending
    3         s. 464.012, F.S.; removing an obsolete qualification
    4         no longer sufficient to satisfy certain nursing
    5         certification requirements; amending s. 464.019, F.S.;
    6         authorizing the Board of Nursing to conduct certain
    7         on-site evaluations; removing a limiting criterion
    8         from the requirement to measure graduate passage
    9         rates; removing a requirement that certain nursing
   10         program graduates complete a specific preparatory
   11         course; clarifying circumstances when programs in
   12         probationary status must be terminated; providing that
   13         accredited and nonaccredited nursing education
   14         programs must disclose probationary status; requiring
   15         notification of probationary status to include certain
   16         information; prohibiting a terminated or closed
   17         program from seeking program approval for a certain
   18         time; providing that a name change or the creation of
   19         a new educational institution does not reduce the
   20         waiting period for reapplication; authorizing the
   21         board to adopt certain rules; removing requirements
   22         that the Office of Program Policy Analysis and
   23         Government Accountability perform certain tasks;
   24         requiring the Florida Center for Nursing to make an
   25         annual assessment of compliance by nursing programs
   26         with certain accreditation requirements; requiring the
   27         center to include its assessment in a report to the
   28         Governor and the Legislature; requiring the
   29         termination of a program under certain circumstances;
   30         providing effective dates.
   31          
   32  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   33  
   34         Section 1. Subsection (1) of section 464.012, Florida
   35  Statutes, is amended to read:
   36         464.012 Certification of advanced registered nurse
   37  practitioners; fees; controlled substance prescribing.—
   38         (1) Any nurse desiring to be certified as an advanced
   39  registered nurse practitioner shall apply to the department and
   40  submit proof that he or she holds a current license to practice
   41  professional nursing and that he or she meets one or more of the
   42  following requirements as determined by the board:
   43         (a) Satisfactory completion of a formal postbasic
   44  educational program of at least one academic year, the primary
   45  purpose of which is to prepare nurses for advanced or
   46  specialized practice.
   47         (a)(b) Certification by an appropriate specialty board.
   48  Such certification shall be required for initial state
   49  certification and any recertification as a registered nurse
   50  anesthetist, psychiatric nurse, or nurse midwife. The board may
   51  by rule provide for provisional state certification of graduate
   52  nurse anesthetists, psychiatric nurses, and nurse midwives for a
   53  period of time determined to be appropriate for preparing for
   54  and passing the national certification examination.
   55         (b)(c) Graduation from a program leading to a master’s
   56  degree in a nursing clinical specialty area with preparation in
   57  specialized practitioner skills. For applicants graduating on or
   58  after October 1, 1998, graduation from a master’s degree program
   59  shall be required for initial certification as a nurse
   60  practitioner under paragraph (4)(c). For applicants graduating
   61  on or after October 1, 2001, graduation from a master’s degree
   62  program shall be required for initial certification as a
   63  registered nurse anesthetist under paragraph (4)(a).
   64         Section 2. Effective December 31, 2018, or upon enactment
   65  of the Nurse Licensure Compact into law by 26 states, whichever
   66  occurs first, subsection (1) of section 464.012, Florida
   67  Statutes, as amended by section 8 of chapter 2016-139, section
   68  12 of chapter 2016-224, and section 7 of chapter 2016-231, Laws
   69  of Florida, is amended to read:
   70         464.012 Certification of advanced registered nurse
   71  practitioners; fees; controlled substance prescribing.—
   72         (1) Any nurse desiring to be certified as an advanced
   73  registered nurse practitioner shall apply to the department and
   74  submit proof that he or she holds a current license to practice
   75  professional nursing or holds an active multistate license to
   76  practice professional nursing pursuant to s. 464.0095 and that
   77  he or she meets one or more of the following requirements as
   78  determined by the board:
   79         (a) Satisfactory completion of a formal postbasic
   80  educational program of at least one academic year, the primary
   81  purpose of which is to prepare nurses for advanced or
   82  specialized practice.
   83         (a)(b) Certification by an appropriate specialty board.
   84  Such certification shall be required for initial state
   85  certification and any recertification as a registered nurse
   86  anesthetist, psychiatric nurse, or nurse midwife. The board may
   87  by rule provide for provisional state certification of graduate
   88  nurse anesthetists, psychiatric nurses, and nurse midwives for a
   89  period of time determined to be appropriate for preparing for
   90  and passing the national certification examination.
   91         (b)(c) Graduation from a program leading to a master’s
   92  degree in a nursing clinical specialty area with preparation in
   93  specialized practitioner skills. For applicants graduating on or
   94  after October 1, 1998, graduation from a master’s degree program
   95  shall be required for initial certification as a nurse
   96  practitioner under paragraph (4)(c). For applicants graduating
   97  on or after October 1, 2001, graduation from a master’s degree
   98  program shall be required for initial certification as a
   99  registered nurse anesthetist under paragraph (4)(a).
  100         Section 3. Paragraph (b) of subsection (2), subsection (5),
  101  subsection (8), paragraph (a) of subsection (9), and subsection
  102  (10) of section 464.019, Florida Statutes, are amended,
  103  paragraph (d) is added to subsection (7) of that section, and
  104  paragraph (e) is added to subsection (11) of that section, to
  105  read:
  106         464.019 Approval of nursing education programs.—
  107         (2) PROGRAM APPROVAL.—
  108         (b) Following the department’s receipt of a complete
  109  program application, the board may conduct an on-site evaluation
  110  if necessary to document the applicant’s compliance with
  111  subsection (1). Within 90 days after the department’s receipt of
  112  a complete program application, the board shall:
  113         1. Approve the application if it documents compliance with
  114  subsection (1); or
  115         2. Provide the educational institution with a notice of
  116  intent to deny the application if it does not document
  117  compliance with subsection (1). The notice must specify written
  118  reasons for the board’s denial of the application. The board may
  119  not deny a program application because of an educational
  120  institution’s failure to correct an error or omission that the
  121  department failed to provide notice of to the institution within
  122  the 30-day notice period under paragraph (a). The educational
  123  institution may request a hearing on the notice of intent to
  124  deny the program application pursuant to chapter 120.
  125         (5) ACCOUNTABILITY.—
  126         (a)1. An approved program must achieve a graduate passage
  127  rate for first-time test takers which who take the licensure
  128  examination within 6 months after graduation from the program
  129  that is not more than 10 percentage points lower than the
  130  average passage rate during the same calendar year for graduates
  131  of comparable degree programs who are United States educated,
  132  first-time test takers on the National Council of State Boards
  133  of Nursing Licensing Examination, as calculated by the contract
  134  testing service of the National Council of State Boards of
  135  Nursing. An approved program shall require a graduate from the
  136  program who does not take the licensure examination within 6
  137  months after graduation to enroll in and successfully complete a
  138  licensure examination preparatory course pursuant to s. 464.008.
  139  For purposes of this subparagraph, an approved program is
  140  comparable to all degree programs of the same program type from
  141  among the following program types:
  142         a. Professional nursing education programs that terminate
  143  in a bachelor’s degree.
  144         b. Professional nursing education programs that terminate
  145  in an associate degree.
  146         c. Professional nursing education programs that terminate
  147  in a diploma.
  148         d. Practical nursing education programs.
  149         2. Beginning with graduate passage rates for calendar year
  150  2010, if an approved program’s graduate passage rates do not
  151  equal or exceed the required passage rates for 2 consecutive
  152  calendar years, the board shall place the program on
  153  probationary status pursuant to chapter 120 and the program
  154  director shall appear before the board to present a plan for
  155  remediation, which shall include specific benchmarks to identify
  156  progress toward a graduate passage rate goal. The program must
  157  remain on probationary status until it achieves a graduate
  158  passage rate that equals or exceeds the required passage rate
  159  for any 1 calendar year. The board shall deny a program
  160  application for a new prelicensure nursing education program
  161  submitted by an educational institution if the institution has
  162  an existing program that is already on probationary status.
  163         3. Upon the program’s achievement of a graduate passage
  164  rate that equals or exceeds the required passage rate, the
  165  board, at its next regularly scheduled meeting following release
  166  of the program’s graduate passage rate by the National Council
  167  of State Boards of Nursing, shall remove the program’s
  168  probationary status. If the program, during the 2 calendar years
  169  following its placement on probationary status, does not achieve
  170  the required passage rate for any 1 calendar year, the board
  171  shall terminate the program pursuant to chapter 120. However,
  172  the board may extend the program’s probationary status for 1
  173  additional year, provided if the program has demonstrated
  174  demonstrates adequate progress toward the graduate passage rate
  175  goal by meeting a majority of the benchmarks established in the
  176  remediation plan. If the program is not granted the 1-year
  177  extension or fails to achieve the required passage rate by the
  178  end of such extension, the board shall terminate the program
  179  pursuant to chapter 120.
  180         (b) If an approved program fails to submit the annual
  181  report required in subsection (3), the board shall notify the
  182  program director and president or chief executive officer of the
  183  educational institution in writing within 15 days after the due
  184  date of the annual report. The program director shall appear
  185  before the board at the board’s next regularly scheduled meeting
  186  to explain the reason for the delay. The board shall terminate
  187  the program pursuant to chapter 120 if the program director
  188  fails to appear before the board, as required under this
  189  paragraph, or if the program it does not submit the annual
  190  report within 6 months after the due date.
  191         (c) A nursing education An approved program, whether
  192  accredited or nonaccredited, which has been placed on
  193  probationary status shall disclose its probationary status in
  194  writing to the program’s students and applicants. The
  195  notification must include an explanation of the implications of
  196  the program’s probationary status on the students or applicants.
  197         (d) If students from a program that is terminated pursuant
  198  to this subsection transfer to an approved or an accredited
  199  program under the direction of the Commission for Independent
  200  Education, the board shall recalculate the passage rates of the
  201  programs receiving the transferring students, excluding the test
  202  scores of those students transferring more than 12 credits.
  203         (7) PROGRAM CLOSURE.—
  204         (d) A program that is terminated or closed under this
  205  section may not seek program approval under its original name or
  206  a new program name for a minimum of 3 years after the date of
  207  termination or closing. An institutional name change or the
  208  creation of a new educational institution with the same
  209  ownership does not reduce the waiting period for reapplication.
  210         (8) RULEMAKING.—The board does not have rulemaking
  211  authority to administer this section, except that the board
  212  shall adopt rules that prescribe the format for submitting
  213  program applications under subsection (1) and annual reports
  214  under subsection (3), and to administer the documentation of the
  215  accreditation of nursing education programs under subsection
  216  (11). The board may adopt rules relating to the nursing
  217  curriculum, including rules relating to the uses and limitations
  218  of simulation technology. The board may not impose any condition
  219  or requirement on an educational institution submitting a
  220  program application, an approved program, or an accredited
  221  program, except as expressly provided in this section.
  222         (9) APPLICABILITY TO ACCREDITED PROGRAMS.—
  223         (a) Subsections (1)-(3), paragraph (4)(b), and paragraph
  224  (5)(b) subsection (5) do not apply to an accredited program.
  225         (10) IMPLEMENTATION STUDY.—The Florida Center for Nursing
  226  and the education policy area of the Office of Program Policy
  227  Analysis and Government Accountability shall study the
  228  administration of this section and submit reports to the
  229  Governor, the President of the Senate, and the Speaker of the
  230  House of Representatives annually by January 30, through January
  231  30, 2020. The annual reports shall address the previous academic
  232  year; provide data on the measures specified in paragraphs (a)
  233  and (b), as such data becomes available; and include an
  234  evaluation of such data for purposes of determining whether this
  235  section is increasing the availability of nursing education
  236  programs and the production of quality nurses. The department
  237  and each approved program or accredited program shall comply
  238  with requests for data from the Florida Center for Nursing and
  239  the education policy area of the Office of Program Policy
  240  Analysis and Government Accountability.
  241         (a) The Florida Center for Nursing education policy area of
  242  the Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government
  243  Accountability shall evaluate program-specific data for each
  244  approved program and accredited program conducted in the state,
  245  including, but not limited to:
  246         1. The number of programs and student slots available.
  247         2. The number of student applications submitted, the number
  248  of qualified applicants, and the number of students accepted.
  249         3. The number of program graduates.
  250         4. Program retention rates of students tracked from program
  251  entry to graduation.
  252         5. Graduate passage rates on the National Council of State
  253  Boards of Nursing Licensing Examination.
  254         6. The number of graduates who become employed as practical
  255  or professional nurses in the state.
  256         (b) The Florida Center for Nursing shall evaluate the
  257  board’s implementation of the:
  258         1. Program application approval process, including, but not
  259  limited to, the number of program applications submitted under
  260  subsection (1); the number of program applications approved and
  261  denied by the board under subsection (2); the number of denials
  262  of program applications reviewed under chapter 120; and a
  263  description of the outcomes of those reviews.
  264         2. Accountability processes, including, but not limited to,
  265  the number of programs on probationary status, the number of
  266  approved programs for which the program director is required to
  267  appear before the board under subsection (5), the number of
  268  approved programs terminated by the board, the number of
  269  terminations reviewed under chapter 120, and a description of
  270  the outcomes of those reviews.
  271         (c) The Florida Center for Nursing shall complete an annual
  272  assessment of compliance by programs with the accreditation
  273  requirements of subsection (11), include in the assessment a
  274  determination of the accreditation process status for each
  275  program, and submit the assessment as part of the reports
  276  required For any state fiscal year in which The Florida Center
  277  for Nursing does not receive legislative appropriations, the
  278  education policy area of the Office of Program Policy Analysis
  279  and Government Accountability shall perform the duties assigned
  280  by this subsection to the Florida Center for Nursing.
  281         (11) ACCREDITATION REQUIRED.—
  282         (e) A nursing education program that fails to meet the
  283  accreditation requirements shall be terminated and is ineligible
  284  for reapproval under its original name or a new program name for
  285  a minimum of 3 years after the date of termination. An
  286  institutional name change or the creation of a new educational
  287  institution with the same ownership does not reduce the waiting
  288  period for reapplication.
  289         Section 4. Except as otherwise expressly provided in this
  290  act, this act shall take effect July 1, 2017.

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