(1) Existing law provides for the licensure and regulation of various health care practitioners by boards within the Department of Consumer Affairs. Existing law requires licensed health care practitioners who perform stem cell therapies that are not approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to communicate to their patients specified information regarding the therapies in a notice and in writing prior to providing the initial stem cell therapy. Under existing law, for these purposes, a “stem cell therapy” is a therapy involving the use of HCT/Ps, defined as human cells, tissues, or cellular- or tissue-based products in accordance with specified federal law. Under existing law, these requirements do not apply to a health care practitioner who has obtained approval for an investigational new drug or device from the FDA for the use of
HCT/Ps.
This bill would exclude from the definition of “stem cell therapy” those therapies involving HCT/Ps that meet specified criteria pursuant to, or that qualify for an exception under, federal law. The bill would require only health care practitioners who perform a stem cell therapy that is subject to FDA regulation, and that is not FDA-approved, to provide the notice and writing to their patients. The bill would exempt from these requirements a health care practitioner who has obtained clearance for an investigational new drug, or an investigational device exemption, from the FDA.
(2) Existing law, the Emergency Medical Services System and the Prehospital Emergency Medical Care Personnel Act, establishes the Emergency Medical Services Authority. The authority is responsible for the coordination and integration of all statewide activities concerning emergency medical
services.
The act requires health facilities to notify prehospital emergency medical care personnel who have provided emergency medical or rescue services, and have been exposed to a person afflicted with a reportable communicable disease or condition, that they have been exposed. If the affected prehospital emergency medical care person has not provided the health facility infection control officer, as defined, with his or her name and telephone number, existing law requires the health facility infection control officer to immediately notify the designated officer of the employer of the prehospital emergency medical care person and the county health officer under specified circumstances. Otherwise, existing law requires the health facility infection control officer to notify the prehospital emergency medical care person consistent with certain state regulations.
This bill would instead require the health facility infection
control officer, in the latter circumstance, to notify the designated officer, not the prehospital emergency medical care person, consistent with those regulations.
(3) Existing law authorizes a local health officer to declare a local health emergency under specified circumstances, including when the release or escape of a hazardous waste or medical waste is an immediate threat to the public health, or upon an imminent and proximate threat of the introduction of certain diseases, chemical agents, toxins, or radioactive agents. Existing law authorizes the local health emergency to remain in effect for 7 days unless the board of supervisors or city council ratifies the local health emergency for a longer period of time. Existing law thereafter requires the board of supervisors or city council to review the need for continuing that local health emergency at least every 14 days.
This
bill would instead require the board of supervisors or city council to review the need for continuing that local health emergency at least every 30 days.
(4) Existing law provides the State Department of State Hospitals with jurisdiction over the execution of laws relating to care and treatment of persons with mental health disorders under the custody of the department. Existing law provides that the Chief, Deputy Chief, supervising investigators, and investigators of the Office of Protective Services of the department are peace officers whose authority extends to any place in the state for the purpose of performing their primary duty or when making an arrest, as specified.
This bill would designate the Chief of the Office of Protective Services of the department as the deputy director of the office, with oversight of all protective service components within the department’s law enforcement and fire
protection services. The bill would require that the deputy director be an experienced law enforcement officer, as specified.
Existing law requires the Director of State Hospitals to appoint and define the duties of the clinical director and the hospital administrator for each state hospital. Existing law requires the Director of State Hospitals to appoint either the clinical director or the hospital administrator to be the hospital director.
This bill would additionally require the Director of State Hospitals to appoint and define the duties of the chief of police services and the hospital director for each state hospital, and would repeal the above provision requiring the appointment of the clinical director or hospital administrator as hospital director. The bill would make conforming changes to related provisions.
Existing law requires the hospital administrator to be
responsible for preserving the peace in the hospital buildings and grounds and authorizes him or her to arrest persons, as specified.
This bill would transfer that duty and that authority to the chief of police services at the hospital, and would require the chief of police services to be an experienced law enforcement officer, as specified.
Existing law authorizes the hospital administrator of each state hospital to designate, as a police officer, one or more of the bona fide employees of the hospital. Under existing law, the hospital administrator and each of those police officers have the powers and authority conferred by law upon peace officers, as specified. Existing law prohibits those police officers from receiving compensation, as specified.
This bill would repeal the authority of the hospital administrator to designate hospital employees as police
officers, and would delete the provision that prohibits the compensation of those police officers. The bill would instead provide that the chief of police services, supervising investigators, investigators, and each hospital police officer have the powers and authority provided to them under existing laws that apply to peace officers, and are required to help ensure integration of treatment, safety, and security, as directed by the hospital director. The bill would make further conforming changes to related provisions.
(5) Existing law, the Bronzan-McCorquodale Act, contains provisions governing the organization and financing of community mental health services for persons with mental disorders
in every county through locally administered and locally controlled community mental health programs. Existing law requires the board of supervisors of each county, or boards of supervisors of counties acting jointly, to adopt, and submit to the Director of Health Care Services in the form and according to the procedures specified by the director, a proposed annual county mental health services performance contract for mental health services in the county or counties. Existing law requires the State Department of Health Care Services to develop and implement the requirements, format, procedure, and submission dates for the preparation and submission of the proposed performance contract. Existing law requires the Director of Health Care Services, or his or her
designee,
to review each proposed county mental health services performance contract to determine that it complies with specified requirements.
This bill would repeal those provisions relating to an annual county mental health services performance contract, and would instead require the department and each county to have a performance contract for community mental health services, the Mental Health Services Act, the Projects for Assistance in Transition from Homelessness grant, the Community Mental Health Services Block Grant, and other federal grants or county mental health programs for the term of 3 years, as specified. The bill would authorize the department to extend the term of the contract for 2 one-year periods, as specified. The bill would further authorize the department to amend the contract at any time during the term of the contract, as specified.
Existing law requires the proposed annual county mental health
services performance contract to include specified provisions, and authorizes the county to choose to include contract provisions for other state-directed mental health managed programs within the performance contract.
This bill would delete that authorization and would instead authorize the department to include contract provisions for other federal grants or county mental health programs in the performance contract. The bill would also delete obsolete provisions and make related, conforming changes.
(6) The California Hospice Licensure Act of 1990 provides for the licensure and regulation by the State Department of Public Health of persons or agencies that provide hospice, to ensure the health and safety of patients experiencing the last phases of life due to the existence of a terminal disease.
This bill would require the department to issue a hospice license to a hospice applicant that meets certain requirements, including, among others, that it is accredited by an entity approved by the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services as a national accreditation organization, and it meets any other additional licensure requirements under the act that are more stringent than the accreditation requirements of the organization, as specified.
The bill would authorize the department to conduct a survey of an accredited hospice to ensure the accreditation requirements are met, and to conduct a survey to investigate complaints against an accredited hospice for substantial noncompliance with the accreditation standards. The bill would make conforming changes to a related provision for purposes of a home health
agency.