Florida SB 1540: Maternal Health Outcomes

Bill Text

1540 
Missing Endangered Persons 
2026-01-09T03:15:33Z 
Authorizing hospitals to disclose specified information about admitted patients to law enforcement agencies for a specified purpose and under certain circumstances; authorizing hospitals to search and use hospital records of admitted patients to identify potential matches to persons listed as missing on the Missing Endangered Persons Information Clearinghouse, etc. 
Original Filed Version 
2026 
S 
2026-07-01T00:00:00Z 
GB 
General Bill 
__ 

 Florida Senate - 2026 SB 1540 

 By Senator Pizzo 

 37-01448-26 20261540__ 
 1 A bill to be entitled 
 2 An act relating to missing endangered persons; 
 3 creating s. 937.032, F.S.; authorizing hospitals to 
 4 disclose specified information about admitted patients 
 5 to law enforcement agencies for a specified purpose 
 6 and under certain circumstances; authorizing hospitals 
 7 to search and use hospital records of admitted 
 8 patients to identify potential matches to persons 
 9 listed as missing on the Missing Endangered Persons 
 10 Information Clearinghouse; authorizing hospitals to 
 11 report to the appropriate law enforcement agency if 
 12 they suspect that an admitted patient of the hospital 
 13 matches the description of a missing endangered person 
 14 in the clearinghouse; authorizing the Agency for 
 15 Health Care Administration to adopt certain rules; 
 16 providing an effective date. 
 17 
 18 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 
 19 
 20 Section 1. Section 937.032, Florida Statutes, is created to 
 21 read: 
 22 937.032 Missing endangered persons; hospital records; 
 23 access and use.— 
 24 (1) In accordance with 45 C.F.R. s. 164.512(f)(2), a 
 25 hospital may disclose any of the following information about an 
 26 admitted patient to a law enforcement agency, either upon 
 27 request or pursuant to subsection (2), for the limited purpose 
 28 of identifying or locating a missing endangered person: 
 29 (a) Name and address. 
 30 (b) Date and place of birth. 
 31 (c) Social security number. 
 32 (d) ABO blood type and rh factor. 
 33 (e) Type of injury. 
 34 (f) Date and time of treatment. 
 35 (g) Date and time of death, if applicable. 
 36 (h) A description of distinguishing physical 
 37 characteristics, including height, weight, gender, race, hair 
 38 and eye color, scars, tattoos, and presence or absence of facial 
 39 hair, such as a beard or moustache. 
 40 (2) Hospitals may search and use hospital records of 
 41 admitted patients for purposes of identifying potential matches 
 42 to persons listed as missing on the Missing Endangered Persons 
 43 Information Clearinghouse. If it is suspected that an admitted 
 44 patient of the hospital matches the description of a missing 
 45 endangered person in the clearinghouse, the hospital may report 
 46 any of the information specified in subsection (1) to the 
 47 appropriate law enforcement agency. 
 48 (3) The Agency for Health Care Administration may adopt 
 49 rules to implement uniform reporting procedures for hospitals 
 50 under this section. 
 51 Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2026.