Mental Health Services for First Responders:
HB 1167 creates a new section of Florida Statutes directing the Division of State Fire Marshal to establish and run a statewide behavioral health access program for first responders. The program is intended to provide mental wellness services and resources with an emphasis on prevention and early intervention, including resiliency training, mental health awareness, posttraumatic growth, peer support team development, suicide prevention campaigns, assistance to departments building internal wellness programs, integration with disaster deployment partners, and statewide research on suicide and other mental health-related issues.
The bill defines “first responder” broadly to include traditional first responders as well as 911 public safety telecommunicators, correctional officers, and correctional probation officers. It also requires a statewide network of licensed professional counselors with additional training in trauma management and evidence-based suicide prevention to serve first responders, their families, and retired first responders at routine, urgent, and crisis levels of care. The bill specifies that first responders would not be required to pay a copayment for these services and requires a research and evaluation plan to be submitted to legislative leaders by June 30, 2026.
If enacted, the bill would add a new statutory program under chapter 394 and assign the Division of State Fire Marshal a new statewide role in coordinating behavioral health access for first responders. It would also expand the scope of state-supported mental health services to cover families and retired first responders, create training expectations for participating counselors, and establish a no-copay framework for covered services. The bill would not only affect first responder agencies and mental health providers, but also create reporting and evaluation obligations for the state program.
The available context suggests generally favorable policy intent, with the bill framed around suicide prevention, mental wellness, and support for first responders. However, there is no committee transcript or recorded vote data in the provided materials, so there is no direct evidence of debate, amendments, or explicit support/opposition from members. The bill ultimately died in the Insurance & Banking Subcommittee, indicating it did not advance despite its public-safety and mental-health focus.
No specific points of contention are documented in the provided transcripts or vote history. Based on the bill text, likely areas of discussion could include the cost of creating and operating a statewide access program, the administrative role assigned to the Division of State Fire Marshal, the requirement for no copayments, and the added training and evaluation mandates for counselors and the program itself. The absence of recorded committee discussion means it is not possible to attribute these concerns to any particular legislator, agency, or stakeholder from the supplied materials.