Florida SB 1262: Construction Contracting

Bill Text

1262 
Physical Therapy Treatment Plans 
2026-01-06T11:16:39Z 
Exempting specified services from the requirement that a physical therapist have a practitioner of record review and sign a plan of treatment, etc. 
Original Filed Version 
2026 
S 
2026-07-01T00:00:00Z 
GB 
General Bill 
__ 

 Florida Senate - 2026 SB 1262 

 By Senator DiCeglie 

 18-01279A-26 20261262__ 
 1 A bill to be entitled 
 2 An act relating to physical therapy treatment plans; 
 3 amending s. 486.021, F.S.; exempting specified 
 4 services from the requirement that a physical 
 5 therapist have a practitioner of record review and 
 6 sign a plan of treatment; providing an effective date. 
 7 
 8 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 
 9 
 10 Section 1. Paragraph (a) of subsection (11) of section 
 11 486.021, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 
 12 486.021 Definitions.—As used in this chapter, unless the 
 13 context otherwise requires, the term: 
 14 (11) “Practice of physical therapy” means the performance 
 15 of physical therapy assessments and the treatment of any 
 16 disability, injury, disease, or other health condition of human 
 17 beings, or the prevention of such disability, injury, disease, 
 18 or other health condition, and the rehabilitation of such 
 19 disability, injury, disease, or other health condition by 
 20 alleviating impairments, functional movement limitations, and 
 21 disabilities by designing, implementing, and modifying treatment 
 22 interventions through therapeutic exercise; functional movement 
 23 training in self-management and in-home, community, or work 
 24 integration or reintegration; manual therapy; massage; airway 
 25 clearance techniques; maintaining and restoring the 
 26 integumentary system and wound care; physical agent or modality; 
 27 mechanical or electrotherapeutic modality; patient-related 
 28 instruction; the use of apparatus and equipment in the 
 29 application of such treatment, prevention, or rehabilitation; 
 30 the performance of tests of neuromuscular functions as an aid to 
 31 the diagnosis or treatment of any human condition; or the 
 32 performance of electromyography as an aid to the diagnosis of 
 33 any human condition only upon compliance with the criteria set 
 34 forth by the Board of Medicine. 
 35 (a) A physical therapist may implement a plan of treatment 
 36 developed by the physical therapist for a patient or provided 
 37 for a patient by a practitioner of record or by an advanced 
 38 practice registered nurse licensed under s. 464.012. The 
 39 physical therapist shall refer the patient to or consult with a 
 40 practitioner of record if the patient’s condition is found to be 
 41 outside the scope of physical therapy. If physical therapy 
 42 treatment for a patient is required beyond 30 days for a 
 43 condition not previously assessed by a practitioner of record, 
 44 the physical therapist shall have a practitioner of record 
 45 review and sign the plan. The requirement that a physical 
 46 therapist have a practitioner of record review and sign a plan 
 47 of treatment does not apply: 
 48 1. When a patient has been physically examined by a 
 49 physician licensed in another state, the patient has been 
 50 diagnosed by the physician as having a condition for which 
 51 physical therapy is required, and the physical therapist is 
 52 treating the condition; or 
 53 2. To services provided for purposes of health promotion, 
 54 injury prevention, wellness, or fitness. 
 55 
 56 For purposes of this paragraph, a health care practitioner 
 57 licensed under chapter 458, chapter 459, chapter 460, chapter 
 58 461, or chapter 466 and engaged in active practice is eligible 
 59 to serve as a practitioner of record. 
 60 Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2026.