HCAF was in Tallahassee last week for our record-breaking 2026 Home Care Day at the Capitol, which took place at the midpoint of Florida’s 60-day Legislative Session. During two days of coordinated advocacy, 55 home care professionals from across the state met directly with lawmakers to advance policies supporting patient access, workforce sustainability, and consumer transparency.

These efforts resulted in engagement with 152 of Florida’s 156 lawmakers, ensuring the voice of care-at-home providers was heard at a critical juncture in the legislative process. Click here for a full recap of Home Care Day. In the meantime, several important legislative developments occurred immediately following our meetings that directly affect HCAF’s policy priorities.

HCAF Priority Legislation Significantly Narrowed, Effectively Concluding Its Path Forward This Session

This session, HCAF advanced SB 1068/HB 1013, targeted, bipartisan consumer protection legislation designed to bring transparency and clarity to Florida’s rapidly growing and increasingly complex care-at-home marketplace.

As originally filed, the bill established a comprehensive regulatory framework to improve consumer transparency, strengthen oversight of companion and homemaker providers, and address widespread confusion regarding caregiver employment relationships, provider accountability, and service limitations.

However, on Thursday, February 12, the House Health Care Facilities & Systems Subcommittee adopted a strike-all amendment that substantially narrowed HB 1013’s scope. The amended version passed the committee unanimously, 18-0, and advanced to its final House committee stop.

The amendment removed nearly all of the bill’s core consumer protection and oversight provisions, including:

• Written disclosure requirements provided to consumers at intake and annually
• State inspection authority over companion and homemaker providers
• Truth-in-advertising and marketing transparency standards
• Fee schedule transparency requirements
• Complaint reporting, recordkeeping, and enforcement provisions

The amended bill now contains only a single requirement: that nurse registries display a disclaimer on their website and marketing materials stating that caregivers are independent contractors and not employees of the registry.

While this limited disclosure requirement represents incremental progress, the comprehensive transparency and accountability framework originally proposed will not advance this session.

Compounding this outcome, the Senate Health Policy Committee — the first required committee stop for the Senate companion bill — has concluded its meetings for the session. As a result, more than 100 bills, including SB 1068, are unable to advance further. Without Senate consideration, HCAF’s top legislative priority is effectively concluded for the 2026 session.

SB 902 Advances Key Improvements to Family Home Health Aide Program

Another priority addressed during Home Care Day — SB 902/HB 733, the Department of Health’s legislative package — continues to advance.

With HCAF’s support, the bill was amended to allow registered nurses to delegate the administration of a Schedule IV controlled substance prescribed for the emergency treatment of an active seizure under the Family Home Health Aide Program. This change strengthens emergency response capabilities for medically fragile children while maintaining appropriate clinical safeguards.

The bill passed committee unanimously, 11-0, and is scheduled for consideration by the Senate Appropriations Committee on Health and Human Services on Wednesday, February 18.

Budget Proposals Exclude Governor’s Recommended Private Duty Nursing Rate Increase

The House and Senate have released competing state budget proposals that differ by approximately $1 billion:

• House Proposal: $113.6 billion
• Senate Proposal: $115 billion
• Governor’s Proposal: $117.4 billion

Notably, neither chamber’s initial budget includes the Governor’s recommended $7.1 million Medicaid private duty nursing rate (PDN) increase, which was intended to adjust reimbursement based on patient acuity and geographic cost differences to help address Florida’s severe workforce shortages.

This omission underscores the importance of continued advocacy, and HCAF is actively engaging budget committee chairs and legislative leadership to secure inclusion of this critical funding before final budget negotiations conclude.

Legislative Session Progress Reflects Slower Pace and Growing Chamber Divisions

As of the midpoint of session, 49 bills had passed at least one chamber, but none had passed both — a slower pace than recent years and an indicator of growing policy disagreements between the House and Senate.

These dynamics have significantly limited movement on substantive policy reforms this session, particularly those requiring alignment between chambers.

Looking Ahead

While SB 1068/HB 1013 will not advance this session in its original form, the record-breaking engagement achieved during Home Care Day reinforced the growing influence and credibility of Florida’s home care provider community.

HCAF will continue working with lawmakers, regulators, and stakeholders and will return to the policymaking table in the 2027 Legislative Session equipped with objective data, state inspection findings, and operational evidence to advance meaningful reforms under new executive and legislative leadership.

In the meantime, HCAF members can access the real-time bill tracker to monitor developments as session continues. HCAF remains actively engaged in the budget process and ongoing legislative negotiations and will continue to keep members informed of all developments affecting care-at-home providers.