County jails: inmate emergency health care.

(1) Existing law authorizes a county sheriff, police chief, or other public agency that contracts for emergency health services, to contract with providers of emergency health care services for care to local law enforcement patients. Under existing law, a county sheriff or police chief is prohibited from releasing inmates from custody for the purpose of seeking medical care, with the intent to rearrest, unless the hospital determines the action would enable it to collect from a 3rd-party source. Existing law requires an Inmate Health Care and Medical Provider Fair Pricing Working Group to be convened and meet as needed to identify and resolve industry issues that create fiscal barriers to timely and affordable emergency inmate health care, among other things. Under existing law, all of these provisions are to be repealed as of January 1, 2014. This bill would delete the repeal date and would add a definition for "local law enforcement patient". Because the bill would extend existing duties imposed upon local law enforcement, the bill would create 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, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to these statutory provisions.