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2026 Bills Impacting Health Care Professions
These are summaries of legislation passed during the 2026 Legislative Session which affects Florida’s health care professions. Select a bill from the list to view a summary, effective date, and a link to the final enrolled bill text.
House Bills
Effective Date: July 1, 2026
HB 47 (Bill Information)
Summary:
The bill authorizes the parent or legal custodian of a child under investigation by the Department of Children and Families (DCF) to request a second medical evaluation or examination, or a compilation of differential diagnoses, within ten days of an initial medical evaluation or examination. The health care practitioner who performs the second medical evaluation or examination, or compiles a differential diagnosis, must submit a written report to DCF and the parent or legal custodian within 10 days. DCF must convene a case staffing to reach consensus in cases with conflicting diagnostic opinions. The bill requires DCF to notify parents that they must report to DCF a child’s preexisting diagnosis of Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, Osteogenesis imperfecta, rickets, or vitamin D deficiency, and must provide DCF with the name and contact information of the health care practitioner who rendered such diagnosis within 10 days after DCF notifies the parents.
The bill establishes a 14-day interval in which a health care practitioner must furnish patient records to DCF after receiving a records request from DCF. In instances of such a diagnosis, the Child Protection Team must consult with certain medical professionals when evaluating the child.
Effective Date: July 1, 2026
HB 327 (Bill Information)
Summary:
The bill updates reportable information for medical doctors, osteopathic physicians, physician assistants, or advanced practice registered nurses, who diagnose or treat women with uterine fibroids, to include personal identifying information for inclusion in the Uterine Fibroid Research Database managed by the Department of Health.
Effective Date: May 22, 2026
HB 809 (Bill Information)
Summary:
The bill authorizes medical doctors, osteopathic physicians, and advanced practice registered nurses who hold a temporary certificate, to practice in an area of critical need to continue providing primary care services in an area that has lost its critical need designation, provided the certificate holder maintains active primary care treatment of at least one patient and the applicable board determines that the certificate holder meets all other requirements.
Effective Date: July 1, 2026
HB 1443 (Bill Information)
Summary:
The bill requires the Institute for Parkinson’s Disease within the University of South Florida to establish and maintain a statewide Parkinson’s disease registry. Beginning January 1, 2027, medical doctors, osteopathic physicians, and advanced practice registered nurses who diagnose or treat patients with Parkinson’s disease must report specified information to the registry. The bill provides liability protection for health care practitioners who comply with these reporting requirements.
Senate Bills
Effective Date: July 1, 2026
SB 844 (Bill Information)
Summary:
The bill requires that the existing two-hour continuing education course on controlled substance prescribing include content on the treatment for patients with sickle cell disease. This course is required for health care practitioners registered with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and are authorized to prescribe controlled substances.