Health

HB 156 adopts the Physician Assistant (PA) Licensure Compact, allowing PAs licensed in one participating state to practice in other member states without obtaining separate licenses. This directly affects licensed PAs and patients across participating states, enabling easier access to care, especially for military families who can now practice across states with a single unrestricted license. Key provisions include creating a national commission to manage the compact, requiring states to share disciplinary actions and background check data, and establishing that PAs must follow the licensing rules of the state where the patient is located during care. The bill standardizes licensing requirements while maintaining each state's authority to discipline PAs under their own laws.

This bill renames Alabama's Clean Indoor Air Act to honor Vivian Davis Figures and expands the smoking ban to include vaping. It prohibits the use of electronic nicotine delivery systems (vaping) in all public places where tobacco smoking is already banned, such as restaurants, government buildings, hospitals, and public transit. The law applies the same rules to vaping as to tobacco, affecting businesses and public spaces that must enforce the ban. It becomes effective October 1, 2026.

SB 197 requires mobile food vendors (like food trucks and carts) to obtain one statewide health inspection and one statewide fire inspection instead of separate local inspections in each county or municipality they operate in. This exempts vendors from needing additional inspections when traveling across the state, effective January 1, 2027. The State Fire Marshal must create a uniform fire inspection process meeting specific safety standards (like hood systems and gas safety) and maintain a list of authorized inspectors. Vendors operating without valid health and fire certificates face Class C misdemeanor penalties, with a 30-day operating ban for repeat violations. The bill directly affects mobile food vendors and local jurisdictions by standardizing inspection requirements statewide.

HB 289 would prohibit Alabama state-issued death certificates from including the date of burial or cremation (referred to as "date of disposition" in the bill). Currently, death certificates list this date alongside the manner and location of disposition, but the bill would remove this requirement. The Alabama Department of Public Health, which issues death certificates, would no longer include this information on state-administered forms. The change is scheduled to take effect on October 1, 2026.

This bill, known as the Alabama Family Planning Act, establishes legal rights for Alabamians to use contraception and access assisted reproductive treatments like in vitro fertilization. It explicitly protects health care providers from restrictions on dispensing contraceptives or providing fertility services, and prevents state or local governments from enforcing laws that interfere with these practices. The legislation allows the Attorney General, health care providers, and individuals to file civil lawsuits to stop any laws or policies that limit access to these reproductive health options, with enforcement beginning on October 1, 2026.