HB 1537 2022
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hb1537-00
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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 the solicitation of non -medical 2
services; creating s. 501.2106, F.S.; defining terms; 3
providing that a person who submits or sponsors a non-4
medical solicitation that contains certain terminology 5
or fails to include specified disclosures commits a 6
deceptive and unfair trade practice, subject to the 7
penalties and remedies of the Florida Deceptive and 8
Unfair Trade Practices Act; creating s. 8 77.025, F.S.; 9
defining terms; prohibiting the unauthorized use, 10
sale, or transfer of protected health information for 11
the purpose of soliciting professional services; 12
providing that a person who willfully and knowingly 13
violates such prohibition commits a d eceptive and 14
unfair trade practice, subject to the penalties and 15
remedies of the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade 16
Practices Act; providing criminal penalties for 17
willful and knowing violations and enhanced criminal 18
penalties for violations committed for financial gain; 19
providing applicability; providing effective dates. 20
21
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 22
23
Section 1. Section 501.2106, Florida Statutes, is created 24
to read: 25
HB 1537 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
501.2106 Non-medical solicitation; deceptive and un fair 26
trade practices.— 27
(1) As used in this section, the term: 28
(a) "Client" means a prospective customer, client, or 29
patron of non-medical professional services. 30
(b) "Non-medical solicitation" means a paid solicitation 31
for non-medical professional ser vices which contains information 32
about a drug or device as defined in s. 499.003 and which is 33
directed to the public through television; radio; the Internet, 34
including a domain name; a newspaper or other periodical; an 35
outdoor advertising sign; or another written, electronic, or 36
recorded communication. 37
(c) "Person" has the same meaning as in s. 1.01(3). 38
(2) A person who submits or approves the submittal of a 39
non-medical solicitation for publication, broadcast, or 40
dissemination, or who pays for or otherw ise sponsors a non-41
medical solicitation, commits a deceptive and unfair trade 42
practice under this part if the solicitation, once published, 43
broadcast, or disseminated, does any of the following: 44
(a) Fails to clearly and conspicuously disclose at the 45
outset of the solicitation the phrase, "This is a paid 46
advertisement for non -medical services." 47
(b) Includes terminology implying that the advertisement 48
is a "medical alert," "health alert," "consumer alert," "public 49
service announcement," or similar public alert or announcement. 50
HB 1537 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
(c) Displays the logo, or a similar facsimile thereof, of 51
a federal or state governmental agency in a manner implying 52
affiliation with, or sponsorship by, a governmental agency. 53
(d) Includes terminology, including use of the term 54
"recall" when referring to a product, implying that the product 55
has been recalled when, in fact, the product has not been 56
recalled by a governmental agency or through agreement between a 57
manufacturer and a governmental agency. 58
(e) Fails to clearly and conspicuously disclose the 59
sponsor of the advertisement. 60
(f) Fails to clearly and conspicuously disclose the 61
individual or entity that will provide professional services to 62
persons responding to the advertisement or how those persons 63
will be referred to such individual or entity. 64
(g) Solicits clients who may allege injury from a 65
prescription drug approved or cleared by, or which is the 66
subject of a monograph authorized by, the United States Food and 67
Drug Administration and fails to clearly and conspicuo usly 68
disclose the following warning: "Do not stop taking a prescribed 69
medication without first consulting with your doctor. 70
Discontinuing a prescribed medication without your doctor's 71
advice can result in injury or death." 72
(h) Solicits clients who may al lege injury from a 73
prescription drug or medical device approved or cleared by, or 74
which is the subject of a monograph authorized by, the United 75
HB 1537 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
States Food and Drug Administration and fails to clearly and 76
conspicuously disclose that the drug or medical dev ice remains 77
approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration, 78
unless the product is recalled or withdrawn. 79
(i) Fails to present any disclosure required by this 80
subsection such that: 81
1. A written disclosure is clearly legible and, if 82
televised or displayed electronically, is displayed for 83
sufficient time to enable the viewer to easily see and fully 84
read the disclosure. 85
2. A spoken disclosure is plainly audible and clearly 86
intelligible. 87
Section 2. Effective October 1, 2022, section 877.025 , 88
Florida Statutes, is created to read: 89
877.025 Solicitation of non -medical services; wrongful use 90
or disclosure of protected health information. — 91
(1) As used in this section, the term: 92
(a) "Person" has the same meaning as in s. 1.01(3). 93
(b) "Protected health information" has the same meaning as 94
provided in 45 C.F.R. s. 106.103. 95
(c) "Solicit" means to offer to provide professional 96
services by written, recorded, or electronic communication or by 97
in-person, telephone, or real -time electronic contact . 98
(2) A person may not use, cause to be used, obtain, sell, 99
transfer, or disclose to another person an individual's 100
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protected health information, without that individual's written 101
authorization, to solicit professional services. 102
(3)(a) A person who violates subsection (2) commits a 103
deceptive and unfair trade practice subject to the penalties and 104
remedies provided in part II of chapter 501. 105
(b) A person who willfully and knowingly violates 106
subsection (2) commits a misdemeanor of the first degree, 107
punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083. 108
(c) A person who willfully and knowingly violates 109
subsection (2) with intent to sell, transfer, or use protected 110
health information for financial gain commits a felony of the 111
second degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, 112
or s. 775.084, except that the term of imprisonment may not 113
exceed 10 years and the fine must be more than $10,000 but may 114
not exceed $250,000. 115
(4) This section does not apply to the disclosure of 116
protected health info rmation to an attorney, or the attorney's 117
use of such protected health information, in any judicial or 118
administrative proceeding or any other use or disclosure 119
otherwise authorized or required by law. 120
Section 3. Except as otherwise expressly provided i n this 121
act, this act shall take effect July 1, 2022. 122