(1) Existing law requires the State Department of Public Health to license and regulate general acute care hospitals, acute psychiatric hospitals, and special hospitals. Existing law requires these hospitals to comply with specific statutory provisions for standards of care and regulations promulgated by the department, and a violation of these provisions or regulations is a crime. Existing law requires each hospital to have a written discharge planning policy and process that requires that the appropriate arrangements for posthospital care are made prior to discharge for those patients likely to suffer adverse health consequences upon discharge if there is no adequate discharge planning. This bill would require each hospital to include a written homeless patient discharge planning policy and process within the hospital discharge policy, as specified. The bill would require a hospital to document specified information before discharging a homeless patient. The bill would, commencing on July 1, 2019, require a hospital to develop a written plan for coordinating services and referrals for homeless patients with the county behavioral health agency, health care and social service agencies in the region, health care providers, and nonprofit social service providers, as available, to assist with ensuring appropriate homeless patient discharge. The bill would also, commencing on July 1, 2019, require a hospital to maintain a log of homeless patients discharged and the destinations to which they were released after discharge, as specified, if any. The bill would specify how its provisions are to be construed in relation to local ordinances, codes, regulations, or orders related to the homeless patient discharge processes, and would exempt state hospitals under the jurisdiction of the State Department of State Hospitals from its provisions. Because a violation of these requirements would be a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (2) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.
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(1) Under existing law, the Lanterman Developmental Disabilities Services Act, the State Department of Developmental Services is authorized to contract with regional centers to provide services and supports to individuals with developmental disabilities. Existing law requires the state to enter into 5-year contracts with regional centers, subject to an annual appropriation by the Legislature, and specifies the responsibilities of the department and the requirements and qualifications of appropriate agencies for purposes of contracting for regional center services. Among other provisions, existing law requires a regional center contract to include annual performance objectives, as specified, and to provide that the regional center will render services in accordance with applicable laws and regulations. This bill would require a contract between the State Department of Developmental Services and a private nonprofit association for the operation of a regional center that is entered into or renewed on and after January 1, 2019, to include specified procedures for employee retention, including requiring a successor contractor to agree to retain designated covered employees of the predecessor contractor for a transition period of 90 days, as specified. The bill would prohibit the successor contractor from reducing the compensation of a covered employee, or terminating a covered employee without cause, during the transition period, and would require the successor contractor to provide each covered employee with a written performance evaluation at the end of the transition period. The bill would authorize a successor contractor and a labor organization to supersede those prohibitions by collective bargaining agreement. If a successor contractor violates certain of these requirements with respect to a covered employee, the bill would authorize the employee to bring an action against the successor contractor for back pay and injunctive relief, as specified. The bill would declare that these provisions are severable. (2) Existing law requires a regional center to include specified information on its Internet Web site for the purpose of promoting transparency and access to public information, including, among other things, contract awards, annual independent audits, and reports on all prior fiscal year expenditures from the regional center operations budget for all administrative services. This bill would require that information to include the salaries, wages, and employee benefits for all managerial positions for which the primary purpose is the administrative management of the regional center, as specified.
Existing law prohibits a provision in a settlement agreement that prevents the disclosure of factual information related to the action in a civil action with a factual foundation establishing a cause of action for civil damages for certain enumerated sexual offenses. Existing law prohibits a court from entering an order in any of these types of civil actions that restricts disclosure of this information, as specified, and it makes a provision in a settlement agreement that prevents the disclosure of factual information related to the action, entered into on or after January 1, 2017, void as a matter of law and against public policy. This bill would prohibit a provision in a settlement agreement that prevents the disclosure of factual information relating to certain claims of sexual assault, sexual harassment, or harassment or discrimination based on sex, that are filed in a civil or administrative action. The bill would make a provision in a settlement agreement that prevents the disclosure of factual information related to the claim, as described in the bill, entered into on or after January 1, 2019, void as a matter of law and against public policy. The bill would also provide that a court may consider the pleadings and other papers in the record, or any other findings of the court in determining the factual foundation of the causes of action specified in these provisions. The bill would create an exception, not applicable if a party is a government agency or public official, for a provision that shields the identity of the claimant and all facts that could lead to the discovery of his or her identity, if the provision is included within the settlement agreement at the request of the claimant.
Existing law, the Legislative Employee Whistleblower Protection Act, imposes criminal and civil liability on a Member of the Legislature or legislative employee, as defined, who interferes with, or retaliates against, a legislative employee's exercise of the right to make a protected disclosure, which is defined as a good faith allegation made by a legislative employee to specified entities that a Member of the Legislature or a legislative employee has engaged in, or will engage in, activity that may constitute a violation of law or a violation of a legislative standard of conduct. This bill would define "protected disclosure" for purposes of that act to also include a complaint made at the request of a legislative employee and a complaint made against a nonemployee in specified circumstances. Existing law, the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) , protects and safeguards the right and opportunity of all persons to generally seek, obtain, and hold employment without discrimination, abridgment, or harassment on account of enumerated protected categories. Existing law also precludes an employer, labor organization, employment agency, or person from discharging, expelling, or otherwise discriminating against any person because the person has opposed any practices forbidden under FEHA or because the person has filed a complaint, testified, or assisted in any FEHA proceeding. Existing law, the Unruh Civil Rights Act, states that all people in California are entitled to the full and equal accommodations, advantages, facilities, privileges, or services in all business establishments, no matter their sex, race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sexual orientation, citizenship, primary language, or immigration status. Existing law establishes a cause of action for violations of that act. Existing law also separately establishes liability for sexual harassment if a plaintiff proves specified elements, including, among other things, that there is a business, service, or professional relationship between the plaintiff and defendant. This bill would declare that neither house of the Legislature may retaliate against a legislative advocate or employee, as defined, because that person has opposed any practices forbidden under the above provisions, or filed a complaint, testified, or assisted in any proceeding relating to a complaint of harassment under those provisions. This bill would impose civil liability for a violation of that prohibition. This bill would also require each house of the Legislature to maintain a record of each harassment complaint made to that house for a period of at least 12 years after the complaint is made. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
Existing law requires the California State University to offer undergraduate and graduate instruction through the master's degree in the liberal arts and sciences and professional education. Existing law authorizes research, scholarship, and creative activity in support of the university's undergraduate and graduate instructional mission. This bill would require the Trustees of the California State University to oversee a competitive process to award funds for the Wildland and Wildland-Urban Interface Wildfire Research Grant Program to one or more campuses of the California State University that can demonstrate an ability to fulfill certain criteria for, among other purposes, conducting research in critical areas of advancement and reform in wildland firefighting and issues vital to the state in the advancement of the understanding of fires in the wildland-urban interface. The bill would require trustees, by July 1, 2020, and every July 1 thereafter, to submit a report to the Legislature on the research and activities of the program. The bill would appropriate $5,000,000 from the General Fund to the trustees for these purposes, thereby making an appropriation.
Existing law establishes the Medi-Cal program, which is administered by the State Department of Health Care Services and under which qualified low-income individuals receive medically necessary health care services, including Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnosis, and Treatment (EPSDT) for an individual under 21 years of age who is covered under the Medi-Cal program, subject to utilization controls, and consistent with federal requirements. The Medi-Cal program is, in part, governed and funded by federal Medicaid program provisions. Under existing state law, a service is "medically necessary" if it is reasonable and necessary to protect life, to prevent significant illness or significant disability, or to alleviate severe pain. This bill would revise the Medi-Cal definition of "medically necessary" for purposes of an individual under 21 years of age to incorporate the existing federal standards related to EPSDT services. The bill would require the department and its contractors to update any model evidence of specified materials to ensure the medical necessity standard for coverage for individuals under 21 years of age is accurately reflected in all materials. The bill would require the department to implement, interpret, and make specific these provisions by means of all-county letters or similar instructions until regulations are revised or adopted by July 1, 2022. The bill would also clarify the meaning of "medically necessary" with regard to prior authorization controls in the Medi-Cal program.
Existing law provides for the licensure and regulation of adult alcoholism or drug abuse recovery or treatment facilities by the State Department of Health Care Services. Existing law defines "alcoholism or drug abuse recovery or treatment facility" to mean any premises, place, or building that provides 24-hour residential nonmedical services, as defined, to adults who are recovering from problems related to alcohol, drug, or alcohol and drug misuse or abuse, and who need alcohol, drug, or alcohol and drug recovery treatment or detoxification services. Existing law requires licensees to provide specified nonmedical services, including recovery, treatment, or detoxification, and requires the department to adopt regulations requiring records and procedures that are appropriate for those services, including discharge and continuing care planning. Existing law authorizes the department to certify alcoholism or drug abuse recovery or treatment programs, to, among other things, identify programs that exceed minimal levels of service quality. This bill would change the definition of "alcoholism or drug abuse recovery or treatment facility" to include facilities that provide residential nonmedical services for less than 24 hours in a day, thereby subjecting additional facilities to the above-referenced licensing and regulatory requirements applicable to those facilities. This bill would require all programs licensed or certified by the department through the provisions above to disclose specified information to the department, including, among other things, ownership of a recovery residence, as defined. The bill would require a licensee to develop a plan to address when a resident relapses that would include, among other things, discharge and continuing care planning, as specified. The bill would require the department to adopt regulations to implement that provision no later than January 1, 2021, and would authorize the use of bulletin or all-county or all-provider letters, until those regulations are adopted. The bill would prohibit a licensee from denying admission to any individual based solely on the individual having a valid prescription from a licensed health care professional for a medication approved by the federal Food and Drug Administration for the purpose of narcotic replacement treatment or medication-assisted treatment of substance use disorders. The bill would authorize the department to terminate review of an application for licensure from any person or entity that previously had a license suspended or revoked for a period of 5 years after the suspension or revocation.
Existing sales and use tax laws impose taxes on retailers measured by gross receipts from the sale of tangible personal property sold at retail in this state, or on the storage, use, or other consumption in this state of tangible personal property purchased from a retailer for storage, use, or other consumption in this state. The Sales and Use Tax Law provides various exemptions from this tax, including an exemption for retail items sold by thrift stores operated by nonprofit organizations, if the purpose of that thrift store is to obtain funding for medical, hospice, or social services provided to individuals with HIV or AIDS by the nonprofit organization, as provided. This exemption will be repealed January 1, 2019. This bill would extend the operation of this exemption until January 1, 2029. The Bradley-Burns Uniform Local Sales and Use Tax Law authorizes counties and cities to impose local sales and use taxes in conformity with the Sales and Use Tax Law, and existing laws authorize districts, as specified, to impose transactions and use taxes in accordance with the Transactions and Use Tax Law, which generally conforms to the Sales and Use Tax Law. Amendments to the Sales and Use Tax Law are automatically incorporated into the local tax laws. Existing law requires the state to reimburse counties and cities for revenue losses caused by the enactment of sales and use tax exemptions. This bill, by automatically incorporating the amendments made to the Sales and Use Tax Law by the bill, would also extend the operation of the exemption indefinitely for those local sales and use taxes and transactions and use taxes. This bill would provide that, notwithstanding Section 2230 of the Revenue and Taxation Code, no appropriation is made and the state shall not reimburse any local agencies for sales and use tax revenues lost by them pursuant to this bill. This bill would take effect immediately as a tax levy.
Existing law provides for the regulation of health insurers by the Department of Insurance. Existing law prohibits a health insurer offering individual health insurance coverage from imposing any preexisting condition exclusion with respect to that coverage. Existing law prohibits a health insurer from conditioning the issuance or offering of individual health benefit plans on any health status-related factor, as specified, and authorizes health insurers to use only age, geographic region, and whether the plan or health insurer covers an individual or family for purposes of establishing rates for individual health benefit plans, as specified. Existing law requires an individual health insurance policy to include, at a minimum, coverage for essential health benefits, as defined. These health care coverage market reforms in the individual market do not apply to short-term limited duration health insurance policies offered by a health insurer. This bill, commencing January 1, 2019, would prohibit a health insurer from issuing, selling, renewing, or offering a short-term limited duration health insurance policy, as defined, for health care coverage in this state. The bill would make conforming changes.
Existing law establishes the Medi-Cal program, which is administered by the State Department of Health Care Services and under which qualified low-income individuals receive health care services. The Medi-Cal program is, in part, governed and funded by federal Medicaid program provisions. Existing federal guidance authorizes the states to require, through Medicaid demonstration projects, certain adult Medicaid beneficiaries to participate in work or community engagement activities as a condition of continued Medicaid eligibility or coverage. This bill would authorize the department to seek waivers of federal Medicaid requirements, including, but not limited to, demonstration projects that aim to either increase the number of Medi-Cal beneficiaries or enhance the medical assistance provided to beneficiaries, as specified. The bill would require a waiver proposed by the department, which offers nonmedical benefits to Medi-Cal beneficiaries, to offer these benefits on a voluntary basis, and not as a condition of receiving medical assistance.