Reportable diseases and conditions.

Existing law requires the State Department of Public Health to establish a list of reportable communicable and noncommunicable diseases and conditions, including, but not limited to, diphtheria, listeria, salmonella, shigella, and streptococcal infection in food handlers or dairy workers, and typhoid. Existing law requires local health officers to report to the department any disease or condition on the list as specified by the department. Violation of these provisions is a crime. This bill would delete the requirement that the list of required reportable diseases and conditions include specified diseases. The bill would require the department to establish a list of communicable diseases and conditions for which clinical laboratories would be required to submit a culture or specimen to the local public health laboratory or the State Public Health Laboratory, as specified. Under existing law, no civil or criminal penalty, fine, sanction, finding, or denial, suspension, or revocation of licensure may be imposed on any person or facility based upon failure to provide notification of a reportable disease or condition unless the disease or condition was printed in the California Code of Regulations at least 6 months prior to the date of the claimed failure. This bill would extend this exemption to the submission of a culture or specimen, as required. The bill would require notification of the person or facility by the department and publication in the California Code of Regulations of reportable diseases and conditions at least 6 months prior to the date of the claimed failure before a penalty, fine, sanction, or finding, or denial, suspension, or revocation of licensure may be imposed. To the extent that this bill would increase the duties of local officials, and would change the definition of an existing crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. 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 with regard to certain mandates no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason. With regard to any other mandates, this bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs so mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.