Florida SB 796: Public Utility Storm Protection Plans

Bill Text

796 
Veterinary Medicine 
2026-03-04T07:32:34Z 
Citing this act as the “Veterinary Workforce Innovation Act”; increasing the amount of time for which prescriptions based solely on a veterinary telehealth evaluation may be issued for certain drugs; providing requirements for veterinary professional associates to receive certificates of registration from the Department of Business and Professional Regulation; requiring the department to make a list of veterinary professional associate registrants publicly available on its website; authorizing the department to rescind the registration of a veterinary professional associate under certain circumstances, etc. 
Committee Substitute 2 
2026 
S 
2027-01-01T00:00:00Z 
GB 
General Bill 
c2 

 Florida Senate - 2026 CS for CS for SB 796 

 By the Committees on Rules; and Regulated Industries; and 
 Senators Bradley and Jones 

 595-03384-26 2026796c2 
 1 A bill to be entitled 
 2 An act relating to veterinary medicine; providing a 
 3 short title; amending s. 474.201, F.S.; revising 
 4 legislative findings, intent, and purpose; amending s. 
 5 474.202, F.S.; defining the term “veterinary 
 6 professional associate”; amending s. 474.2021, F.S.; 
 7 increasing the amount of time for which prescriptions 
 8 based solely on a veterinary telehealth evaluation may 
 9 be issued for certain drugs; amending s. 474.203, 
 10 F.S.; revising the applicability of certain 
 11 exemptions; creating s. 474.2126, F.S.; providing 
 12 requirements for veterinary professional associates to 
 13 receive certificates of registration from the 
 14 Department of Business and Professional Regulation; 
 15 requiring the department to make a list of veterinary 
 16 professional associate registrants publicly available 
 17 on its website; authorizing the department to suspend 
 18 the registration of a veterinary professional 
 19 associate upon a certain determination by the Board of 
 20 Veterinary Medicine; authorizing the department to 
 21 rescind the registration of a veterinary professional 
 22 associate under certain circumstances; prohibiting a 
 23 person from holding himself or herself out as a 
 24 veterinary professional associate under certain 
 25 circumstances; authorizing a registered veterinary 
 26 professional associate to engage in the practice of 
 27 veterinary medicine under certain circumstances; 
 28 prohibiting a registered veterinary professional 
 29 associate from taking certain actions; providing 
 30 exceptions; amending s. 828.30, F.S.; conforming 
 31 provisions to changes made by the act; providing an 
 32 effective date. 
 33 
 34 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 
 35 
 36 Section 1. This act may be cited as the “Veterinary 
 37 Workforce Innovation Act.” 
 38 Section 2. Section 474.201, Florida Statutes, is amended to 
 39 read: 
 40 474.201 Legislative findings, intent, and purpose.— 
 41 (1) The Legislature finds that the practice of veterinary 
 42 medicine is potentially dangerous to the public health and 
 43 safety if conducted by incompetent and unlicensed practitioners. 
 44 The legislative purpose in enacting this chapter is to ensure 
 45 that every veterinarian practicing in this state meet minimum 
 46 requirements for safe practice. It is the legislative intent 
 47 that veterinarians who are not normally competent or who 
 48 otherwise present a danger to the public shall be disciplined or 
 49 prohibited from practicing in this state. 
 50 (2) The Legislature finds that the practice of educated, 
 51 trained, and experienced veterinary professional associates will 
 52 increase consumer access to high-quality veterinary medical 
 53 services at a reasonable cost to consumers, while also 
 54 increasing the efficiency of the practice of veterinary medicine 
 55 in this state. 
 56 Section 3. Present subsection (14) of section 474.202, 
 57 Florida Statutes, is redesignated as subsection (15), and a new 
 58 subsection (14) is added to that section, to read: 
 59 474.202 Definitions.—As used in this chapter: 
 60 (14) “Veterinary professional associate” means an 
 61 individual who has graduated with a master’s degree or the 
 62 equivalent in veterinary clinical care from an accredited 
 63 institution and who meets the requirements to be registered by 
 64 the department. 
 65 Section 4. Subsection (4) of section 474.2021, Florida 
 66 Statutes, is amended to read: 
 67 474.2021 Veterinary telehealth.— 
 68 (4) A veterinarian practicing veterinary telehealth: 
 69 (a) May not engage in the practice of veterinary telehealth 
 70 unless it is within the context of a veterinarian/client/patient 
 71 relationship; 
 72 (b) Shall practice in a manner consistent with his or her 
 73 scope of practice and the prevailing professional standard of 
 74 practice for a veterinarian who provides in-person veterinary 
 75 services to patients in this state and shall employ sound, 
 76 professional judgment to determine whether us