Bill > S1540

This bill modifies regulations for physician assistants (PAs) in Florida by creating a pathway for PAs to practice without direct physician supervision under specific conditions. To be eligible, a PA must hold an active, unencumbered license, provide primary care services in a rural area of opportunity, have no recent disciplinary actions, and have completed at least 3,000 clinical practice hours within the past five years. Registered PAs can practice in primary care specialties like family medicine, pediatrics, internal medicine, women's health, and psychiatry, and can perform general PA functions, including admitting, managing, and discharging patients from healthcare facilities. They must obtain professional liability insurance of at least $100,000 per claim and $300,000 annually, and are prohibited from performing surgical procedures deeper than subcutaneous tissues. PAs practicing without supervision must disclose their qualifications and practice status to new patients in writing, and the Department of Health will distinguish their licenses and include the registration in their practitioner profiles. The bill also removes previous requirements for supervising physicians to notify the Department of Health about delegating prescriptive authority and simplifies prescription documentation requirements. These changes aim to increase access to healthcare in rural areas by providing more practice flexibility for physician assistants.