House Bill 763 amends Florida Statutes concerning child welfare, particularly focusing on the administration of psychotropic medication to children in the custody of the Department of Children and Families (DCF) and the Road-to-Independence Program for young adults transitioning from foster care. The bill specifies that a new medical report for psychotropic medication is only necessary under certain conditions, such as changes in dosage or the prescribing physician. It also raises the age limit for eligibility in the Road-to-Independence Program from 23 to 26 years and introduces a lifetime limit of 60 months for financial assistance under this program. Additionally, the DCF is required to develop specific outcome metrics for postsecondary education services and aftercare services, which will be analyzed by various demographics to evaluate program effectiveness.

The bill further enhances the screening and oversight of individuals involved in child care, particularly in family foster homes. It states that household members aged 12 to 18 residing with the owner or operator of a family foster home do not need to be fingerprinted but must undergo delinquency record screening. The definition of "household member" is clarified to include children over 12 who are dependent or defined as a child under specific statutes. Moreover, the bill mandates that psychotropic medications for children in the Medicaid program can only be prescribed with the informed consent of a parent or legal guardian, which must be documented in the child's medical record and provided to the pharmacy, replacing the previous requirement for a signed attestation. The bill is set to take effect on July 1, 2026.

Statutes affected:
H 763 Filed: 39.407, 409.912