HB 747 2022
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
A bill to be entitled 1
An act relating to protections of medical conscience; 2
creating s. 381.00321, F.S.; providing a short title; 3
providing legislative findings and intent; providing 4
definitions; providing that health care providers and 5
health care payers have the right to not participate 6
in or pay for any health care services that violate 7
their consciences; providing that such providers and 8
payers have a right to make certain decision s 9
consistent with their religious beliefs under certain 10
circumstances; prohibiting a person from taking or 11
threatening to take adverse action against such 12
providers and payers for specified actions; providing 13
for civil remedies and damages; providing immun ity 14
from civil, criminal, and administrative liability for 15
such providers and payers under certain circumstances; 16
providing an effective date. 17
18
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 19
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Section 1. Section 381.00321, Florida Statute s, is created 21
to read: 22
381.00321 Rights of conscience of health care providers 23
and health care payers. — 24
(1) SHORT TITLE.—This section may be cited as the 25
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"Healthcare Ethics and Liberty Protection Act." 26
(2) LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS AND INTENT. — 27
(a) The Legislature finds that the right of conscience is 28
a fundamental and inalienable right. Threats to the right of 29
conscience of health care providers and health care payers have 30
become increasingly common and severe in recent years. The swift 31
pace of scientific advancement, the expansion of medical 32
capabilities, and with the mistaken notion that health care 33
providers and health care payers are mere public utilities, 34
promise to make the crisis worse unless action is taken to 35
restore conscience to its rightful p lace. As patient autonomy to 36
decline a health care service must be respected, health care 37
providers and health care payers must have the right to decline 38
participating in or paying for specific, nonemergency services 39
that violate their consciences. 40
(b) A health care provider or health care payer should not 41
be compelled to participate in or pay for any health care 42
service that the provider or payer objects to on the basis of 43
conscience. 44
(3) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section, the term: 45
(a) "Conscience" means the religious, moral, or ethical 46
beliefs or principles held by a health care provider or health 47
care payer. 48
(b) "Health care payer" means a health insurer that pays 49
for, or arranges for, the payment of a health care service 50
HB 747 2022
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
provided to a patient , whether such payment is made in whole or 51
in part. 52
(c) "Health care provider" means a health care provider as 53
defined in s. 768.381(1)(f) or a student of a health care 54
education program. 55
(d) "Health care service" means inpatient or outpatient 56
tests or treatments of a human disease, condition, or 57
dysfunction or medical or other health care -related research. 58
(e) "Health insurer" means an authorized insurer offering 59
health insurance as defined in s. 624.603 for individual or 60
group coverage, a health mai ntenance organization as defined in 61
s. 641.19(12) issuing coverage through an individual or group 62
contract, or a self-insurance plan as defined in 624.031. 63
(f) "Participate" means to take part in any way in 64
providing a health care service or any part of such service. 65
(4) RIGHTS OF CONSCIENCE. — 66
(a) A health care provider or health care payer has the 67
right not to participate in or pay for any specific health care 68
service that violates the provider's or payer's conscience. 69
(b) A health care provider th at is a business entity, or a 70
health care payer that holds itself out to the public as 71
religious, and states in its governing documents that it has a 72
religious purpose or mission and has internal operating policies 73
or procedures that implement such purpose or mission, has the 74
right to make employment, staffing, contracting, and 75
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
credentialing decisions consistent with the provider's or 76
payer's religious beliefs. 77
(5) VIOLATIONS AND CIVIL REMEDIES. — 78
(a) A person may not take or threaten to take adverse 79
action against a health care provider or health care payer for: 80
1. Declining to participate in a health care service on 81
the basis of conscience. 82
2. Disclosing information to an appropriate governmental 83
agency that the health care provider or health care p ayer 84
reasonably believes is evidence of an employer's: 85
a. Violation of this section; 86
b. Violation of any law, rule, or regulation; 87
c. Violation of any standard of care or other ethical 88
guidelines for the provision of any health care service; or 89
d. Gross mismanagement, gross waste of funds, abuse of 90
authority, or any action that is a substantial and specific 91
danger to public health or safety. 92
(b) A health care provider or health care payer that 93
establishes a violation of this section has a civil ca use of 94
action for treble damages, an injunction, or any other 95
appropriate relief in law or equity. Injunctive relief includes, 96
but is not limited to, reinstatement of a health care provider 97
or health care payer to a previous position, reinstatement of 98
board certification, and relicensure. Such damages are 99
cumulative and may not be limited by any other remedies that may 100
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be available under any other law. A prevailing plaintiff is 101
entitled to recover reasonable attorney fees and court costs. 102
Any additional burden or expense incurred by another health care 103
provider or health care payer arising from the exercise of the 104
right of conscience is not a defense to a violation of this 105
section. 106
(6) IMMUNITY FROM LIABILITY .—Health care providers and 107
health care payers a re immune from civil, criminal, or 108
administrative liability for exercising the right of conscience 109
with respect to a health care service. A health care provider or 110
health care payer that is a business entity is immune from 111
civil, criminal, or administrativ e liability for any claims 112
related to or arising out of the exercise of the right of 113
conscience by a person employed, contracted, or credentialed by 114
such provider or payer. 115
Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2022. 116