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SB0046 • 2026

Nonparticipating and Out-of-network Nurse Registries and Home Health Agencies

Nonparticipating and Out-of-network Nurse Registries and Home Health Agencies

Passed Legislature

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

Sponsor
Sharief
Last action
2025-10-29
Official status
Senate - Withdrawn prior to introduction
Effective date
2026-07-01

Plain English Breakdown

The official source material does not provide specific details on how the law will affect costs or availability of care from nurse registries and home health agencies.

Rules for Nurse Registries and Home Health Agencies

This law stops certain health insurance plans from limiting people's choices when getting care from nurse registries or home health agencies that are not part of their network.

What This Bill Does

  • It says state group health insurance plans cannot stop people from using non-network nurse registries and home health agencies.
  • It tells Medicaid managed care plans they can't restrict enrollees from getting care from out-of-network providers.
  • It requires that non-participating nurse registries and home health agencies get the same payment as in-network ones for similar services.

Who It Names or Affects

  • People with state group health insurance plans or Medicaid managed care plans.
  • Individual health insurers and their policyholders.
  • Health maintenance organizations (HMOs) and their subscribers.
  • Nurse registries and home health agencies that are not part of a network.

Terms To Know

Nonparticipating
A provider who is not part of an insurance plan's network.
Out-of-network
Services provided by a non-participating provider.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The law only applies to specific types of health insurance plans and does not cover all healthcare services.
  • It is unclear how this will affect the overall cost or availability of care from nurse registries and home health agencies.

Bill History

  1. 2025-10-29 Senate

    • Withdrawn from Banking and Insurance; Appropriations Committee on Health and Human Services; Fiscal Policy • Withdrawn prior to introduction

  2. 2025-10-06 Senate

    • Referred to Banking and Insurance; Appropriations Committee on Health and Human Services; Fiscal Policy

  3. 2025-09-15 Senate

    • Filed

Official Summary Text

Nonparticipating and Out-of-network Nurse Registries and Home Health Agencies; Prohibiting state group health insurance plans and state-contracted health maintenance organizations, the Agency for Health Care Administration, Medicaid managed care plans, individual health insurers, and health maintenance organizations, respectively, and any persons responsible for administering claims on behalf of such plans, organizations, agency, or insurers, from restricting participants, recipients, enrollees, policyholders, and subscribers from obtaining care from nonparticipating or out-of-network licensed nurse registries or home health agencies; revising applicability for group health insurance, blanket health insurance, and franchise health insurance, etc.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text
Florida Senate
-
2026

SB 46

By
Senator Sharief

35-00008A-26 202646__
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to nonparticipating and out-of-network
3 nurse registries and home health agencies; creating
4 ss. 110.1236, 409.9055, 409.9755, 627.64744, and
5 641.3152, F.S.; prohibiting state group health
6 insurance plans and state-contracted health
7 maintenance organizations, the Agency for Health Care
8 Administration, Medicaid managed care plans,
9 individual health insurers, and health maintenance
10 organizations, respectively, and any persons
11 responsible for administering claims on behalf of such
12 plans, organizations, agency, or insurers, from
13 restricting participants, recipients, enrollees,
14 policyholders, and subscribers from obtaining care
15 from nonparticipating or out-of-network licensed nurse
16 registries or home health agencies; prohibiting such
17 entities and plans from steering, requiring, or unduly
18 influencing selection of nurse registries or home
19 health agencies; requiring that nonparticipating or
20 out-of-network nurse registries and home health
21 agencies be reimbursed at the same rate as in-network
22 providers; amending s. 627.662, F.S.; revising
23 applicability for group health insurance, blanket
24 health insurance, and franchise health insurance;
25 providing an effective date.
26
27 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
28
29 Section 1. Section 110.1236, Florida Statutes, is created
30 to read:
31
110.1236
State group health insurance plan prohibited

32
practices; nonparticipating and
out-of-network nurse registries

33
and home health
agencies
.—
A state group health insurance plan,

34
state-contracted HMO, or other insurance plan under the state

35
group insurance program, or any person responsible for

36
administering claims on behalf of the state group health

37
insurance plan, state-contracted HMO, or other insurance plan

38
under the state group insurance program
, may not restrict

39
participants from obtaining care
from nonparticipating or out

40
of-network nurse registries or home health agencies licensed

41
under part III of chapter 400. Such plans, entities, or persons

42
may not steer, require, or unduly influence a participant to use

43
preferred or in-network nurse registries or home health

44
agencies
.
Nonparticipating and o
ut-of-network nurse registries

45
and home health agencies

licensed under part III of chapter 400

46
must be reimbursed at the same rate as in-network providers for

47
equivalent services under the plan
.

48 Section 2. Section 409.9055, Florida Statutes, is created
49 to read:
50
409.9055
Medicaid
prohibited practices;
nonparticipating

51
and out-of-network nurse registries and home health
agencies
.

52
The agency, or any person responsible for administering claims

53
on behalf of the agency,
may not restrict Medicaid recipients

54
from obtaining care
from nonparticipating
or out-of-network

55
nurse registries
or
home health agencies
licensed under part III

56
of chapter 400
.
The
agency or person may not steer, require, or

57
unduly influence a
Medicaid recipient
to use preferred or

58
participating nurse registries or home health agencies.

59
Nonparticipating
and out-of-network
nurse registries and home

60
health agencies

licensed under part III of chapter 400
must be

61
reimbursed at the same rate as participating
or in-network

62
providers for equivalent services under the plan
.

63 Section 3. Section 409.9755, Florida Statutes, is created
64 to read:
65
409.9755
Managed care p
lan prohibited practices;

66
nonparticipating and
out-of-network
nurse registries and home

67
health agencies
.—
A Medicaid
managed care plan, or any person

68
responsible for administering claims on behalf of the plan,
may

69
not restrict
enrollees

from
obtaining care from
nonparticipating

70
or out-of-network
nurse registries
or
home health agencies

71
licensed under part III of chapter 400
. Such plan or person may

72
not steer, require, or unduly influence an enrollee to use

73
preferred or participating nurse registries or home health

74
agencies. Nonparticipating
and out-of-network
nurse registries

75
and home health agencies

licensed under part III of chapter 400

76
must be reimbursed at the same rate as participating
or in

77
network
providers for equivalent services under the plan.

78 Section 4. Section 627.64744, Florida Statutes, is created
79 to read:
80
627.64744
Policy
prohibit
ions
;
nonparticipating and
out-of

81
network
nurse registries and home health agencies
.—
Any health

82
insurer issuing a policy of health insurance in this state
, or

83
any person responsible for administering claims on behalf of

84
such

insurer
,
may not restrict
policyholders

from obtaining care

85
from
nonparticipating or out-of-network
nurse registries
or
home

86
health agencies
licensed under part III of chapter 400
.

87
Notwithstanding s. 627.6471
, s
uch
insurer
or person may not

88
steer, require, or unduly influence a
policyholder
to use

89
preferred or
in-network
nurse registries or home health

90
agencies.
Notwithstanding s.
627.64194
, nonparticipating and

91
out-of-network
nurse registries and home health agencies

92
licensed under part III of chapter 400
must be reimbursed at the

93
same rate as
preferred or in-network
providers for equivalent

94
services under the
policy.

95 Section 5. Subsection (16) is added to section 627.662,
96 Florida Statutes, to read:
97 627.662 Other provisions applicable.—The following
98 provisions apply to group health insurance, blanket health
99 insurance, and franchise health insurance:
100
(16)
Section 627.64744, relating to policy prohibitions and

101
nonparticipating and out-of-network nurse registries and home

102
health agencies.

103 Section 6. Section 641.3152, Florida Statutes, is created
104 to read:
105
641.3152 Policy prohibitions; nonparticipating and out-of

106
network nurse registries and home health
agencies
.—A
health

107
maintenance organization

providing health services
in this

108
state, or any person responsible for administering claims on

109
behalf of such
organization
,
may not restrict
subscribers from

110
obtaining
care from nonparticipating
or
out-of-network nurse

111
registries
or
home health agencies
licensed under part III of

112
chapter 400
.
S
uch
organization
or person may not steer, require,

113
or unduly influence a
subscriber
to use preferred or in-network

114
nurse registries or home health agencies. Notwithstanding s.

115
627.64194, nonparticipating and out-of-network nurse registries

116
and home health agencies

licensed under part III of chapter 400

117
must be reimbursed at the same rate as preferred or in-network

118
providers for equivalent services under the
contract
.

119 Section 7. This act shall take effect July 1, 2026.