FL H0349

Creates the "Florida Patient Protection Act" (s. 395.1013, F.S.), establishing mandatory minimum registered nurse-to-patient staffing ratios for health care facilities including acute care hospitals, long-term acute care hospitals, ambulatory surgical centers, and psychiatric facilities, effective January 1, 2026

Sets specific nurse-to-patient ratios by unit type: 1:1 for trauma emergency and operating rooms; 1:2 for critical care/ICU, labor and delivery, NICU, and postanesthesia units; 1:3 for step-down units; 1:4 for emergency rooms, medical-surgical, pediatrics, telemetry, psychiatric, and specialty care units; and 1:5 for rehabilitation and skilled nursing units

Prohibits health care facilities from averaging nurse-to-patient ratios across a unit, imposing mandatory overtime to meet staffing requirements, terminating or refusing to fill positions for LPNs, CNAs, or ancillary staff to meet the ratios, or using video cameras as a substitute for direct nurse observation and assessment

Provides whistle-blower protections for direct care registered nurses who refuse unsafe work assignments, creating a private cause of action in state court with remedies including reinstatement, lost wages, attorney fees, and other damages

Authorizes the Agency for Health Care Administration to impose civil penalties of up to $25,000 per violation, with a mandatory minimum of $25,000 per violation for facilities found to have a pattern of practice of violations, and requires the agency to publish the names of penalized facilities on its website