TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Florida lawmakers have filed two payments for the 2026 legislative session that search to develop well being care entry and occupational scopes of observe by mandating insurance coverage protection for stuttering therapy and authorizing occupational therapists to carry out dry needling.
Authorizing occupational therapists to carry out dry needling
What it does: SB 914 seeks to explicitly authorize licensed occupational therapists to carry out dry needling by defining the observe and establishing obligatory minimal coaching and supervision requirements set by the Board of Occupational Remedy.
- Definition: The invoice legally defines “dry needling” as a talented, Western medicine-based intervention utilizing filiform needles to stimulate a “myofascial set off level” for managing numerous neuromusculoskeletal situations.
- Expertise requirement: An occupational therapist should full two years of licensed observe earlier than they’ll carry out dry needling.
- Coaching & competency: Therapists should full 50 hours of in-person persevering with schooling on dry needling, together with idea, secure dealing with of needles/biohazardous waste, and psychomotor expertise, with the teacher affirming the therapist’s competency to observe safely..
- Supervised periods: Therapists should full a minimum of 25 affected person periods of dry-needling beneath the supervision of an skilled occupational therapist who has actively carried out the service for a minimum of one yr.
- Consent and plan of care: Dry needling can solely be carried out if the affected person consents to the therapy and the process is explicitly a part of the affected person’s documented plan of care.
- Delegation prohibited: The invoice strictly prohibits the delegation of dry needling to any particular person aside from an occupational therapist who’s particularly licensed to carry out it beneath this new a part of the legislation.
The sponsor: The invoice is being carried by Republican Sen. Alexis Calatayud. A Home model has but to be filed.
If authorized, the invoice will take impact July 1, 2026.
Mandating full insurance coverage and Medicaid protection for stuttering therapy, removes limits and prior authorizations
What it does: HB 785 mandates that numerous medical health insurance insurance policies and Medicaid should present complete protection for each habilitative and rehabilitative companies, units, and speech remedy used to deal with stuttering in Florida, whereas eradicating frequent protection limits.
- Broadened protection mandate: The invoice requires particular person and group medical health insurance insurance policies, well being upkeep contracts, and non-obligatory Medicaid companies to cowl companies and units for the therapy of stuttering.
- Habilitative and rehabilitative companies: Protection should embody each habilitative companies (to assist study or enhance expertise) and rehabilitative companies (to take care of or improve present functioning) for stuttering, no matter whether or not the stuttering is assessed as developmental.
- No service limits: The protection can’t be topic to any limits on most annual advantages, together with the variety of visits an insured or recipient might make to a speech-language pathologist.
- Elimination of utilization assessment: Protection will not be topic to utilization assessment, prior authorization, or a dedication that the companies are “medically essential.”
- Telehealth requirement: Protection should embody speech remedy supplied each in particular person and by way of telehealth, with telehealth protection not allowed to be lower than in-person protection.
- Medicaid growth: The invoice authorizes the Company for Well being Care Administration to pay for these companies and units for Medicaid recipients and permits the company to hunt essential federal approval to implement the expanded protection.
The sponsors: Democratic Rep. Anna Eskamani is carrying the Home invoice, whereas an an identical invoice, SB 922, is being carried by Democratic Sen. Carlos Guillermo Smith within the Senate.
If authorized, the invoice will take impact July 1, 2026.
The legislative session is scheduled to start Jan. 13.
