Christine Jordan Sexton
The Florida Health Care Association’s (FHCA) legislative wish list includes pitches for more money and to expand the scope of practice for some certified nursing assistants (CNAs).
The FHCA hopes to accomplish those goals during the upcoming 2023 Regular Session that begins March 7. Surprisingly, restricting lawsuits did not make the cut.
Immediate attempts to contact the FHCA for comment on its wish list were unsuccessful.
FHCA CEO Emmett Reed said in a statement that the association “is also working to educate the Legislature about the importance of bringing equity to the long term care sector and the impact that the ‘sue-to-settle’ climate has on operations, as lawsuits divert resources necessary for investing in quality and damage staff morale.”
The FHCA, which represents the majority of the state’s nursing home industry, issued a press release Monday asking lawmakers for a $311 million funding increase, more than half of which ($159 million) will be distributed to all facilities to keep up with inflation, according to the association.
The remaining $152.3 million would be targeted to nursing homes that meet certain quality requirements. Specifically, the money would be included in the “quality improvement” portion of a formula the state uses to set Medicaid nursing home rates.
Additionally, the FHCA is supporting legislation that would expand the scope of practice for some certified nursing assistants. Legislation from Sen. Colleen Burton (SB 558) and Rep. William Robinson (HB 351) would allow CNAs with at least one year of experience to obtain additional training and be allowed to pass out medications to nursing home residents and home health agency patients.
To administer meds, the CNAs must complete an additional 34-hour training course approved by the Board of Nursing in medication administration and associated tasks.
