Emergency Services

In Progress
AB 40 (Bonta, D-Oakland)
Follow
Introduced on Dec. 2. To be heard in the Assembly Health Committee.

AB 40 would add “reproductive health services, including abortion,” to the definition of “emergency services and care” under the Health and Safety Code. Per the state’s laws governing the provision of emergency services, health facilities must provide “emergency services and care” to determine if an emergency medical condition or active labor exists. CHA is working with the author’s office on amendments to ensure that non-emergency reproductive health services are not included in this definition.

Vanessa Gonzalez

Job title:
VP State Advocacy

Jackie Garman

Job title:
Vice President Legal Counsel
In Progress
AB 290 (Bauer-Kahan, D-San Ramon)
Oppose
Introduced on Jan. 22. To be heard in the Assembly Health and Judiciary committees.

AB 290 would make significant changes to California’s emergency services and care laws, including substantially increasing fines and civil penalties for various actions relating to emergency services and care, currently ranging from $1,000-$25,000, to a maximum of $1 million per violation. The bill would also eliminate both the current prohibition on duplicating federal fines, meaning hospitals could face both state and federal penalties for the same violation, as well as the cumulative maximum limit of $30,000 for state and federal fines for the same circumstances. Additionally, the bill would allow district attorneys or the attorney general to recover civil penalties of up to $1 million per violation of an injunction against noncompliance. It would also allow individuals and medical facilities suing a hospital for a violation of this article to recover punitive damages in addition to other allowed damages. The bill also removes citizenship and preexisting medical conditions from the list of protected characteristics for emergency services.

Vanessa Gonzalez

Job title:
VP State Advocacy

Trina Gonzalez

Job title:
VP Policy
In Progress
AB 447 (M. González, D-Los Angeles)
Under Review
Introduced on Feb. 6.

AB 447 would allow physicians or authorized prescribers to dispense an unused portion of a non-controlled medication to an emergency department (ED) patient upon discharge if all of the following conditions are met: the drug is not a controlled substance, the medication was previously ordered and administered to the patient during their ED visit, and dispensing the remaining portion is necessary to continue the patient’s treatment.

Vanessa Gonzalez

Job title:
VP State Advocacy

Sheree Lowe

Job title:
VP Policy