A Florida House panel Thursday backed a wide-ranging plan that seeks to trim health care regulations and carry out federal changes in programs such as food assistance and Medicaid.
The plan (HB 693), which was approved by the House Health Care Facilities & Systems Subcommittee, is one of two major health care bills that House leaders rolled out for this year’s legislative session. The other bill, which also has started moving forward, seeks to lower prescription drug prices.
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The 143-page bill that advanced Thursday includes regulatory changes such as eliminating the state’s long-debated “certificate of need” process, which restricts the addition of nursing homes, hospice providers and intermediate care facilities for people with developmental disabilities.
The bill also would eliminate restrictions on advanced practice registered nurses practicing autonomously, allow dental hygienists to have greater authority to treat patients and remove a cap on the number of physician assistants that each doctor can supervise.
Bill sponsor Mike Redondo, R-Miami, said such proposals are “designed to strengthen Florida’s ability to compete with other states for labor so we have a stronger health care workforce and greater access to care, eliminate arbitrary government limits on market entry for key health care providers and empower Floridians to make the best health care choices for their families at the best price.”
But many of the proposals have long been controversial — and have faced opposition in the Senate. Groups such as the Florida Medical Association, Florida Dental Association, Florida Hospice & Palliative Care Association, and Florida Health Care Association and LeadingAge Southeast — which both represent nursing homes — objected to the bill Thursday.
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The hospice and nursing home groups focused on the proposed elimination of the certificate of need process, which requires receiving a determination from the state that a need exists before facilities can be built or services expanded. Lawmakers and Gov. Ron DeSantis in 2019 eliminated the so-called “CON” process for hospitals, but it remained for the three other types of facilities.
Supporters of eliminating the process have said such a move would be a more free-market approach. But opponents Thursday pointed to issues such as a shortage of health care workers that they said would worsen if the CON process goes away and more facilities open..
“In the midst of a workforce crisis, the additional demand that would be created by repealing CON would no doubt increase scarcity, exacerbating a problem that exists in our state already,” said Steve Bahmer, president and CEO of LeadingAge Southeast.
In trying to lift restrictions on advanced practice registered nurses and allow more authority for dental hygienists, the bill wades into what is known as a “scope of practice” debate. Opponents of such proposals contend, in part, that APRNs and dental hygienists don’t have the same training as doctors and dentists.
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But a group that represents certified registered nurse anesthetists, who would see restrictions lifted under the part of the bill involving APRNs, praised the measure.
“It is past time to eliminate these antiquated laws and rules that reduce patients’ access to care,” Florida Association of Nurse Anesthesiology president Ryan Shores said in a prepared statement. “As Florida continues to grow and age, it is so critical (that) our highly skilled professionals can serve Floridians in hospitals and surgery centers, in small towns or large cities in all 67 counties.”
While parts of the bill deal with state regulatory issues, other parts involve carrying out changes included in last year’s federal “One Big Beautiful Act” that affect issues such as eligibility for Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP. In a nod to the federal law, the bill is titled the “Big Beautiful Healthcare Frontier Act.”
As an example of the changes, the federal law narrowed the types of immigrants who will be eligible for SNAP benefits and expanded work requirements. The change affecting immigrants is estimated to result in about 10,000 fewer SNAP recipients in Florida, according to a House staff analysis.
A heavily discussed issue Thursday involved part of the federal law that would lead to financial penalties for states that have high error rates in determining eligibility for the SNAP program. Florida had a 15.1 percent error rate in 2024 — a rate that, if not lowered, could lead to a $1 billion penalty, according to the staff analysis.
The bill would direct the Department of Children and Families to lower the error rate below 6 percent by March 30. To do so, the bill would require people seeking SNAP benefits to provide documentation about housing and utility expenses, rather than relying on “self-attestation.”
But critics said many people might not be able to comply with the documentation requirements.
“You’re talking about people living in cars,” Rep. Robin Bartleman, D-Weston, said. “They don’t have computers.”
The bill, which was approved in a 12-4 vote Thursday, would need to clear the House Health & Human Services Committee before it could go to the full House.
