Pediatric Behavioral and Mental Health Screenings

Children Healthcare Parental Rights

Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor: Tendrich
Last action: 2026-03-13
Official status: House - Died in Health Care Facilities & Systems Subcommittee
Effective date: 2026-07-01

Plain English Breakdown

The bill has passed both chambers but is not yet in effect as of the last action date.

Pediatric Behavioral and Mental Health Screenings

This bill requires health agencies to create rules for early screenings of children's mental and behavioral health and provides parents with information on sleep, screen time, and nutrition.

What This Bill Does

Requires the agency to make rules about how to do early screenings for children’s mental and behavioral health issues.
Makes sure that managed care plans follow these screening rules when providing services to children from birth to age 21.
Tells the Department of Health to give parents or guardians information on sleep, screen time, and nutrition for their children.
Requires the agency to set performance measures by January 1, 2027, and report data annually starting in 2028.

Who It Names or Affects

Children from birth to age 21 who need mental or behavioral health screenings.
Parents or guardians of children needing these screenings.
Health care providers and managed care plans that provide services to children.

Terms To Know

Managed Care Plans: Organizations that manage healthcare for a group of people, like Medicaid recipients, by providing or arranging for the provision of medical services.
Performance Measures: Specific goals and standards used to measure how well an organization is doing its job.

Limits and Unknowns

The bill does not specify what happens if health care providers do not follow the rules.
It's unclear how much funding will be provided for implementing these new screening requirements.

Bill History

2026-03-13 House
• Died in Health Care Facilities & Systems Subcommittee
2026-01-13 House
• 1st Reading (Original Filed Version)
2026-01-12 House
• Referred to Health Care Facilities & Systems Subcommittee • Referred to Health Care Budget Subcommittee • Referred to Health & Human Services Committee • Now in Health Care Facilities & Systems Subcommittee
2026-01-07 House
• Filed

Official Summary Text

Pediatric Behavioral and Mental Health Screenings; Requires agency to adopt rules establishing certain practice parameters & protocols for provision of early periodic screening, diagnostic, & treatment services for certain persons; requires DOH to provide parent or legal guardian information on sleep, screen time, & nutrition & make such information available for download; requires agency, by specified date, to adopt measures relating to early periodic screening, diagnostic, & treatment services & collect & report performance measures & outcome data to Governor & Legislature.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text

HB 1133 2026

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb1133-00
Page 1 of 3
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 pediatric behavioral and mental 2
health screenings; creating s. 409.9746, F.S.; 3
requiring the agency to adopt rules establishing 4
certain practice parameters and protocols for the 5
provision of early periodic screening, diagnostic, and 6
treatment services for certain persons; requiring the 7
Department of Health to provide a parent or legal 8
guardian information on sleep, screen time, and 9
nutrition and make such information available for 10
download; requiring the agency, by a specified date, 11
to adopt measures relating to early periodic 12
screening, diagnostic, and treatment services and 13
collect and report performance measures and outcome 14
data to the Governor and the Legislature; providing an 15
effective date. 16
17
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 18
19
Section 1. Section 409.9746, Florida Statutes, is created 20
to read: 21
409.9746 Early periodic screening, diagnostic, and 22
treatment services; pediatric behavioral and mental health 23
screenings.— 24
(1) The agency shall adopt rules establishing practice 25

HB 1133 2026

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb1133-00
Page 2 of 3
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

parameters and protocols, and requiring managed care plans to 26
provide services consistent with such practice parameters and 27
protocols, including, but not limited to, all of the following: 28
(a) The use of validated, age-appropriate, trauma-informed 29
diagnostic tools based on nationally recognized clinical 30
practice guidelines to provide early periodic screening, 31
diagnostic, and treatment services to participants from birth 32
through 21 years of age. 33
(b) Authorizing a health care provider to use mobile 34
response teams, community mental health centers, behavioral 35
health hubs, and other qualified health care providers for 36
consultation, support with medication management, and 37
introduction of the patient to another health care provider as a 38
referral. 39
(c) Encouraging parents or legal guardians to participate 40
in mental health programs that provide education and support, 41
including, but not limited to, general parenting skills or more 42
specialized programs that offer education and support for more 43
specific behavioral or mental health issues. 44
(d) Requiring health care providers to give parents or 45
legal guardians information created by the Department of Health 46
about sleep, screen time, and nutrition. The department shall 47
develop such information and make it available for download by 48
health care providers. 49
(2) By January 1, 2027, the agency shall adopt performance 50

HB 1133 2026

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb1133-00
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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

measures related to early periodic screening, diagnostic, and 51
treatment services and establish outcome data reporting 52
requirements. The agency shall use the measures as a tool to 53
monitor plan performance in connection with other measures 54
required pursuant to this part. Beginning January 1, 2028, the 55
agency shall submit an annual report on the performance measures 56
and outcome data to the Governor, the President of the Senate, 57
and the Speaker of the House of Representatives. 58
Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2026. 59