Applications are due April 20, 2026. More Information available at
www.samhsa.gov/newsroom/press-announcements/20260306/...

Press Inquiries: Christina Johnson, christina@on3pr.com

Physician Inquiries: Jeff Scott, Esq., jscott@flmedical.org

STATEMENT: Florida Medical Association on Childhood Vaccinations and Immunizations

Tallahassee, Fla. – On behalf of our 23,000 members, the Florida Medical Association unequivocally supports the vaccination and immunization of school-aged children against diseases that decades ago proved life-threatening to our kids.

The FMA advocates for physicians and their patients to promote the public health, ensure the highest standards of medical practice, and to enhance the quality and availability of health care in the Sunshine State. This includes the safe and effective administration of vaccines and immunizations based on years of research and efficacy.

About the Florida Medical Association (FMA)

Founded in 1874, the FMA is a professional association dedicated to the service and assistance of Doctors of Medicine and Doctors of Osteopathic Medicine in Florida. The FMA represents more than 23,000 members on issues of legislation and regulatory affairs, medical economics and education, public health, and ethical and legal issues.

New Background Screening Requirements Now Apply to All Physicians

Effective July 1, 2025, all Florida-licensed physicians must comply with updated background screening requirements under CS/CS/HB 975: Background Screenings and Certifications. This change, passed in 2024, eliminates the exemption previously granted to physicians licensed before January 2013.

What This Means:

All physicians must now complete electronic fingerprinting before their next license renewal. If your license renews in January, the Florida Department of Health recommends initiating the process now to avoid delays. High demand is already impacting processing times for licensure applications and renewals.

Already Fingerprinted?
If you previously completed Level II background screening, you may not need to submit fingerprints again. You can check the status of your fingerprint retention at any time through the Clearinghouse Applicant Initiated (CHAI) Website.

Are You an Employer?
Make sure your staff is also in compliance. These changes apply to many healthcare professionals who were previously exempt, including physician assistants, midwives, dietitians, occupational and physical therapists, and psychologists. View the full list in this Cleared to Care Poster (PDF).

Start Here:

• Background Screening Process Overview

• Watch the Cleared to Care Webinar

Plan ahead to ensure timely renewal and avoid disruptions to your licensure.

On February 7th, the Trump administration announced a new policy to cap facilities and administration costs associated with National Institutes of Health (NIH) grants at 15%. This cap could significantly hinder vital biomedical research across the country, including research aimed at developing effective treatments and prevention strategies for mental health and substance use disorders. The courts have issued a pause on the administration’s plan, but your elected officials need to hear from you!

REGISTER HERE

This event is part of a NEW Series for Early Career Psychiatrists! Stay tuned for upcoming events on:

• Contract Negotiation
• Financial Planning
• The Future of Psychiatric Practice

Despite its proven effectiveness and available reimbursement, adoption of CoCM is slow due to high implementation costs. Please take a moment to urge your member of congress to support H.R.5819/S.1378, the COMPLETE Care Act, to increase Medicare payments for integrated care and provide technical assistance to practices, easing these barriers.

To support health care professionals and centers impacted by Hurricane Helene, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has made available accelerated payments to Medicare Part A providers and advance payments to Medicare Part B suppliers as of October 2. CMS has also enabled blanket waivers and other flexibilities in affected states.

Click Here to read more on the CME website.

U.S. Reps. Mariannette Miller-Meeks, MD (R-IA), and Jimmy Panetta (D-CA), along with a bipartisan group of physician Congress members, recently circulated a letter urging House leaders to not only prevent a looming 2.8% Medicare physician payment cut, but also provide physicians with a payment update that reflects current inflationary pressures. Please email your congressional representative via the AMA’s Physicians Grassroots Network by Friday, Oct. 11, and ask them to sign the Miller-Meeks/Panetta "Dear Colleague" letter.

Updates on Pending Medicare Payment Cuts

Next year, physicians face a 2.8% Medicare conversion factor cut. This significant pay reduction is largely the result of Congress’ unwillingness to statutorily fix the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule.

This update from the FMA explains how certain specialties could be affected, and what you can do to support meaningful payment reform. Read the FMA Update HERE.

The Florida Reimbursement Assistance for Medical Education (FRAME) Program assists eligible physicians with the repayment of medical education loans. Qualifying physicians in primary care specialties, including psychiatry, can receive awards up to $20,000 per year.

The deadline to apply is April 15, 2024. Visit the Department’s FRAME page for more information about eligibility, award amounts, and documentation requirements.

Psychological Evaluations No Longer Required for Adult Transgender Patients. 

New Consent Form Required. 

The BOOM and BOM Joint Rules/Legislative Committee met August 3 to discuss the Emergency Rules for Adult/Minor masculinizing medications for patients with gender dysphoria. Patient information and informed consent form are  Found Here .

The Joint committee removed one section of the Adult Consent form, removing the following language from page 3:

“Before beginning HRT and every two years thereafter, the individual needs to undergo a thorough psychological and social evaluation performed by a Florida licensed board-certified psychiatrist or a Florida licensed psychologist. The psychiatrist or psychologist must submit a letter to the prescribing physician confirming this.”

Read more about this requirement in an APA Article HERE

FPS has compiled a list of HIPAA Compliant Vendors with discounts to FPS/APA Members, for more information, visit the FPS HIPAA resource page.

The key change is the addition of section (3) to the Act, “Security and Storage of Personal Medical Information.” This new language requires health care providers that utilize certified electronic health record technology to ensure that all patient information stored in an offsite physical or virtual environment, including through a third-party or subcontracted computing facility or an entity providing cloud computing services, is physically maintained in the continental United States or its territories or Canada.

The amendment to Florida’s Electronic Health Records Exchange Act becomes effective on July 1, 2023.

Taking effect on May 11, 2023, the temporary rule extends the full set of telemedicine flexibilities adopted during the COVID-19 PHE for six months—through November 11, 2023. For any practitioner-patient telemedicine relationships that have been or will be established up to November 11, 2023, the full set of telemedicine flexibilities regarding prescription of controlled medications established during the COVID-19 PHE will be extended for one-year—through November 11, 2024.

https://www.dea.gov/press-releases/2023/05/09/dea-samhsa-extend-covid-19-telemedicine-flexibilities-prescribing

For more information, please see: https://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/pubs/docs/MATE_Training_Letter_Final.pdf

Who is eligible?

• All providers must have a license in clear/active status.
• Medical Doctors with primary care specialties, including psychiatrists
• Doctors of Osteopathic medicine with primary care specialties, including psychiatrists
• Physician Assistants
• Advanced Practice Registered Nurses (APRN) with primary care specialties such as certified nurse-midwives
• APRNs registered to engage in autonomous practice under section 464.0123, Florida Statutes
• Licensed Practical Nurses
• Registered Nurses

The Department anticipates using the HRSA Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA) designations to identify areas of unmet needs. Please visit HRSA’s HPSA Find Tool to determine the potential eligibility of service location(s).  For more information, please see the Florida Department of Health website.

 To All Health Insurers, Managed Care Organizations, and Other Health Entities Authorized to do Business in Florida

This notice is a reminder that all health insurers, managed care organizations, and other health entities must comply with provisions of section 252.358, Florida Statutes, which allows for early prescription refills in the event the Governor issues an Executive Order declaring a State of Emergency. This mandate remains in effect until the Governor’s Executive Order is rescinded or expires. Please be governed accordingly.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE

An important tool for psychiatry has been TMS, but many insurances have been using extremely restrictive criteria. Dr. Barnett heavily advocated nine years ago for better coverage for TMS by First Coast Service Options (the Medicare administrator for Florida) as the lead person from FPS and as a member of the CAC. Then in 2018, Dr. Barnett tried to get FCSO to reconsider their coverage policy, and, in January 2019, they agreed to put this on the waitlist for re-consideration. 

Finally, FCSO reconsidered coverage for TMS.  And they agreed to lower the requirement from four failed med trials to one failed med trial! The real effect of this is that not only will persons covered by Medicare have better access, but commercial insurers tend to follow suit for their coverage requirements.

To learn more, HERE is the link for the FCSO page about the coverage. In the upper right corner is a button for the Tracking Sheet.  In the Tracking Sheet, it shows that there were three persons who submitted letters for re-consideration of various aspects of the policy, including Dr. Barnett.