Fla. Stat. § 400.462 — Florida Code / Title XXIX / Chapter 400 / Part III / Section 400.462
400.462 Definitions.
Status: in_force

As used in this part, the term:

(1) “Administrator” means a direct employee, as defined in subsection (10), who is a licensed physician, physician assistant, or registered nurse licensed to practice in this state or an individual having at least 1 year of supervisory or administrative experience in home health care or in a facility licensed under chapter 395, under part II of this chapter, or under part I of chapter 429.

(2) “Admission” means a decision by the home health agency, during or after an evaluation visit to the patient’s home, that there is reasonable expectation that the patient’s medical, nursing, and social needs for skilled care can be adequately met by the agency in the patient’s place of residence. Admission includes completion of an agreement with the patient or the patient’s legal representative to provide home health services as required in s. 400.487(1).

(3) “Advanced practice registered nurse” means a person licensed in this state to practice professional nursing and certified in advanced or specialized nursing practice, as defined in s. 464.003.

(4) “Agency” means the Agency for Health Care Administration.

(5) “Approved training program” means a course of training approved by the agency, in consultation with the Board of Nursing, to train a family caregiver as a home health aide for medically fragile children.

(6) “Certified nursing assistant” means any person who has been issued a certificate under part II of chapter 464.

(7) “Client” means an elderly, handicapped, or convalescent individual who receives companion services or homemaker services in the individual’s home or place of residence.

(8) “Companion” or “sitter” means a person who spends time with or cares for an elderly, handicapped, or convalescent individual and accompanies such individual on trips and outings and may prepare and serve meals to such individual. A companion may not provide hands-on personal care to a client.

(9) “Department” means the Department of Children and Families.

(10) “Direct employee” means an employee for whom one of the following entities pays withholding taxes: a home health agency; a management company that has a contract to manage the home health agency on a day-to-day basis; or an employee leasing company that has a contract with the home health agency to handle the payroll and payroll taxes for the home health agency.

(11) “Director of nursing” means a registered nurse who is a direct employee, as defined in subsection (10), of the agency and who is a graduate of an approved school of nursing and is licensed in this state; who has at least 1 year of supervisory experience as a registered nurse; and who is responsible for overseeing the delivery of professional nursing and home health aide services of the agency.

(12) “Eligible relative” means a patient 21 years of age or younger who has an underlying physical, mental, or cognitive impairment that prevents him or her from safely living independently, is eligible to receive skilled care or respite care services under the Medicaid program, and is related to his or her family caregiver.

(13) “Fair market value” means the value in arms length transactions, consistent with the price that an asset would bring as the result of bona fide bargaining between well-informed buyers and sellers who are not otherwise in a position to generate business for the other party, or the compensation that would be included in a service agreement as the result of bona fide bargaining between well-informed parties to the agreement who are not otherwise in a position to generate business for the other party, on the date of acquisition of the asset or at the time of the service agreement.

(14) “Family caregiver” means a person who provides or intends to provide significant personal care to an eligible relative.

(15) “Home health agency” means a person that provides one or more home health services.

(16) “Home health agency personnel” means persons who are employed by or under contract with a home health agency and enter the home or place of residence of patients at any time in the course of their employment or contract.

(17) “Home health aide” means a person who is trained or qualified, as provided by rule, and who provides hands-on personal care, performs simple procedures as an extension of therapy or nursing services, assists in ambulation or exercises, assists in administering medications as permitted in rule and for which the person has received training established by the agency under this part, or performs tasks delegated to him or her under chapter 464.

(18) “Home health aide for medically fragile children” means a family caregiver who meets the qualifications specified in this part and who performs tasks delegated to him or her under chapter 464 while caring for an eligible relative, and provides care relating to activities of daily living, including those associated with personal care; maintaining mobility; nutrition and hydration; toileting and elimination; assistive devices; safety and cleanliness; data gathering; reporting abnormal signs and symptoms; postmortem care; patient socialization and reality orientation; end-of-life care; cardiopulmonary resuscitation and emergency care; residents’ or patients’ rights; documentation of services performed; infection control; safety and emergency procedures; hygiene, grooming, skin care, and pressure sore prevention; wound care; oxygen use and safety and other respiratory procedures; tracheostomy care; enteral care and therapy; intravenous assistive activities and alternative feeding methods; and any other tasks delegated to the family caregiver under chapter 464.

(19) “Home health services” means health and medical services and medical supplies furnished to an individual in the individual’s home or place of residence. The term includes the following: (a) Nursing care. (b) Physical, occupational, respiratory, or speech therapy. (c) Home health aide services. (d) Dietetics and nutrition practice and nutrition counseling. (e) Medical supplies, restricted to drugs and biologicals prescribed by a physician.

(20) “Home infusion therapy” means the administration of intravenous pharmacological or nutritional products to a patient in his or her home.

(21) “Home infusion therapy provider” means a person that employs, contracts with, or refers a licensed professional who has received advanced training and experience in intravenous infusion therapy and who administers infusion therapy to a patient in the patient’s home or place of residence.

(22) “Homemaker” means a person who performs household chores that include housekeeping, meal planning and preparation, shopping assistance, and routine household activities for an elderly, handicapped, or convalescent individual. A homemaker may not provide hands-on personal care to a client.

(23) “Immediate family member” means a husband or wife; a birth or adoptive parent, child, or sibling; a stepparent, stepchild, stepbrother, or stepsister; a father-in-law, mother-in-law, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, brother-in-law, or sister-in-law; a grandparent or grandchild; or a spouse of a grandparent or grandchild.

(24) “Medical director” means a physician who is a volunteer with, or who receives remuneration from, a home health agency.

(25) “Nurse registry” means any person that procures, offers, promises, or attempts to secure health-care-related contracts for registered nurses, licensed practical nurses, certified nursing assistants, home health aides, companions, or homemakers, who are compensated by fees as independent contractors, including, but not limited to, contracts for the provision of services to patients and contracts to provide private duty or staffing services to health care facilities licensed under chapter 395, this chapter, or chapter 429 or other business entities.

(26) “Patient” means any person who receives home health services in his or her home or place of residence.

(27) “Personal care” means assistance to a patient in the activities of daily living, such as dressing, bathing, eating, or personal hygiene, and assistance in physical transfer, ambulation, and in administering medications as permitted by rule.

(28) “Physician” means a person licensed under chapter 458, chapter 459, chapter 460, or chapter 461.

(29) “Physician assistant” means a person who is a graduate of an approved program or its equivalent, or meets standards approved by the boards, and is licensed to perform medical services delegated by the supervising physician, as defined in s. 458.347 or s. 459.022.

(30) “Remuneration” means any payment or other benefit made directly or indirectly, overtly or covertly, in cash or in kind. However, if the term is used in any provision of law relating to health care providers, the term does not apply to an item that has an individual value of up to $15, including, but not limited to, a plaque, a certificate, a trophy, or a novelty item that is intended solely for presentation or is customarily given away solely for promotional, recognition, or advertising purposes.

(31) “Satellite office” means a secondary office of a nurse registry established pursuant to s. 400.506(1) in the same health service planning district as a licensed nurse registry operational site.

(32) “Skilled care” means nursing services or therapeutic services required by law to be delivered by a health care professional who is licensed under part I of chapter 464; part I, part III, or part V of chapter 468; or chapter 486 and who is employed by or under contract with a licensed home health agency or is referred by a licensed nurse registry.

(33) “Staffing services” means services provided to a health care facility, school, or other business entity on a temporary or school-year basis pursuant to a written contract by licensed health care personnel and by certified nursing assistants and home health aides who are employed by, or work under the auspices of, a licensed home health agency or who are registered with a licensed nurse registry.

History: s. 38, ch. 75-233; s. 2, ch. 81-318; ss. 62, 79, 83, ch. 83-181; s. 12, ch. 85-167; s. 1, ch. 87-123; s. 2, ch. 88-219; s. 1, ch. 88-323; s. 1, ch. 90-101; s. 31, ch. 90-306; s. 2, ch. 90-319; s. 25, ch. 91-57; s. 28, ch. 91-263; ss. 2, 23, ch. 93-214; s. 781, ch. 95-148; s. 56, ch. 95-228; s. 126, ch. 99-8; s. 1, ch. 99-332; ss. 102, 156, ch. 2000-318; s. 77, ch. 2000-349; s. 2, ch. 2005-243; s. 60, ch. 2006-197; s. 1, ch. 2008-246; s. 41, ch. 2012-160; s. 124, ch. 2014-19; s. 1, ch. 2015-66; s. 8, ch. 2016-145; s. 30, ch. 2018-106; s. 4, ch. 2020-9; s. 9, ch. 2020-156; s. 25, ch. 2021-51; s. 1, ch. 2023-183; s. 3, ch. 2025-171.