FL H0351

Authorizes a supervising physician to authorize a licensed physician assistant to perform services under the direction of a podiatric physician when they are partners, shareholders, or employees of the same group practice, with the supervising physician bearing liability for the assistant's performance and actions.

Expands the definition of "physician" in medical assistant statutes to include podiatric physicians, allowing podiatric physicians to supervise medical assistants under the same regulations as other physicians.

Requires the Board of Podiatric Medicine to mandate a minimum of 2 hours of continuing education related to safe and effective prescribing of controlled substances as part of biennial license renewal (up to 40 hours total).

Creates new statutes authorizing physician assistants to perform services under the direction of licensed podiatric physicians and establishing that podiatric physicians supervising medical assistants shall be governed by existing medical assistant regulations.

Revises the definition of "health care provider" in direct health care agreements to explicitly include podiatric physicians licensed under chapter 461.

Effective date: July 1, 2020.