Alternative Treatment Options for Veterans

HB 501 (2019), created section 295.156, Florida Statutes, allowing alternative treatment options for veterans starting July 1, 2019.

The Department of Veterans’ Affairs may contract with a state university or Florida College System institution to provide any of the following alternative treatments:

• Accelerated resolution therapy
• Equine therapy
• Hyperbaric oxygen therapy, which must be provided at a registered hyperbaric oxygen facility
• Music therapy
• Service animal training therapy

Veterans qualify for the above treatments if he or she:

(1) Has been diagnosed by a health care practitioner* with service-connected posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or a service-connected traumatic brain injury.

(2) Voluntarily agrees to such alternative treatment; and

(3) Can demonstrate he or she has previously sought services for PTSD or a traumatic brain injury through the federal Veteran Affairs service delivery system OR through private health insurance, if available.