TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – On Tuesday, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed another set of four bills into law, which cover health-related issues like cancer research and insurance coverage.
These bills were presented to DeSantis on Monday and are now set to take effect on July 1, alongside more than 160 others.
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For a full list of Florida laws going into effect next month, click here.
The new laws signed on Tuesday are as follows:
HB 885 — Biomarker Testing
House Bill 885 requires coverage under the state group insurance plan and Medicaid for biomarker testing.
This method allows physicians to diagnose or treat a patient’s disease or condition by examining biological factors like genes, proteins or other bodily substances.
Under this law, the Medicaid program will be required to implement the added coverage by Oct. 1, and it will be applicable to the state group insurance policies starting on Jan. 1, 2025.
SB 1582 — Florida Department of Health
Senate Bill 1582 amends several provisions regarding the FDOH.
Specifically, these changes include the following:
- Creating a new position — the “Environmental Health Technician” (EHT) — and allowing the EHT to perform septic tank inspections without a four-year degree
- Creating the Andrew John Anderson Pediatric Rare Disease Grant Program to invest in researching cures for rare pediatric diseases
- Standardizing the hearing-screening requirements for newborns, infants and toddlers at hospitals, licensed birth facilities, and birth centers
- Allowing certain applicants for licensure as a Medical Marijuana Treatment Center 90 days to fix problems with an application
SB 7072 — Cancer Research Funding
Senate Bill 7072 revises state statutes regarding the Casey DeSantis Cancer Research Program.
Under this law, the program is established to promote the provision of high-quality health care for people undergoing cancer treatments in Florida.
In addition, the law makes other governmental changes related to funding cancer research in the state.
SB 7078 — Public Records (Cancer Research)
Senate Bill 7078 creates a public records exemption for proprietary business information related to the review of research grant applications under SB 7072.
However, the exemption will be repealed on Oct. 2, 2029 unless reenacted by the Legislature, per the Open Government Sunset Review Act.
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