Summary


The rules are being updated due to the changes to Chapter 400, Part III, Florida Statutes, made by the 2006 Florida Legislature in Chapter 2006-71 and 2006-192, Laws of Florida. The changes in the rule for Chapter 2006-71 are: revising 59A-18.018 and the Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan to include the means by which the same type and quantity of services will be provided to special needs patients in shelters that they received prior to the evacuation; removing the Department of Health as the reviewer of multi-county plans as requested by the Department and referring to the contact designated by the Department for plan reviews; and adding the requirement for documentation of efforts made to deliver the same type and quantity of services in the patient record if the agency is unable to continue services. The following revisions are made to comply with Chapter 2006-192: the change of ownership definition is deleted in 59A-18.002 since the definition is now in s. 408.803, F.S.; the conditional license is removed from 59A-18.004 as Chapter 408, Part II, F.S., permits either a standard or a provisional license; and 59A-18.016 is revised pursuant to 408.806, F.S., for late renewal application fines, and a separate subsection is added for the change of ownership late application fine, decreasing the maximum amount to $500. Legal references from Chapter 408, Part II, F.S., replace Chapter 400, Part III, F.S., references in sections of the rule pertaining to initial, renewal and change of ownership licensure applications; surveys; voluntary relinquishment of license; level 2 background screening for administrators and financial officers; and financial instability. Legal references from Chapter 408, Part II, F.S., are inserted in sections of the rule pertaining to administrative fines, denials, moratoriums and injunctions in addition to the Chapter 400, Part III, F.S., references. Other changes include the elimination of the insurance requirement since there is no legal authority; the elimination of the requirement for a listing of independent contractor names and license numbers with the renewal application; the addition of s. 400.488, F.S., on administration of medications to the laws given by nurse registries to independent contractors; and the revision of 59A-18.005 to include that physician assistants and advanced registered nurse practitioners may order medications in addition to physicians, as permitted in s. 400.506(17), F.S.