Mental health.

Removed the requirement (former Section 1797.287) that ALL law enforcement transports to emergency departments must go to the nearest appropriate emergency department, along with its detailed exceptions for mass casualty incidents, trauma/STEMI/stroke protocols, and hospital diversion status.

Renumbered the Health and Safety Code article from Article 7.8 (starting at Section 1797.285) to Article 4 (starting at Section 1797.280), reflecting the reduced number of sections.

Added new subsection (d) to W&I Code Section 5150.3 stating the section does not prevent a peace officer from following written local behavioral health diversion, transportation, and destination policies or agreements.

Added new subsection (e) to W&I Code Section 5150.3 exempting the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and California Correctional Health Care Services from the transport requirements.

Removed Section 1797.289, which gave the Emergency Medical Services Authority regulatory oversight, audit authority, and the power to impose administrative civil penalties up to $25,000 per pattern of violation for non-compliance.

Removed the legislative findings section (former Section 1797.285) and the standalone definitions section (former Section 1797.286), including the definition of 'nearest appropriate emergency department' from the Health and Safety Code.

In Welfare and Institutions Code Section 5150.3(a), changed 'closest designated facility' to 'closest appropriate designated facility,' adding a reasonableness qualifier to the transport destination requirement for 5150 assessments.

Rewrote W&I Code Section 5150.3(b) to state that if an emergency department is the most appropriate destination, the person shall be transported to the closest appropriate emergency department, rather than only applying as a fallback when a designated facility cannot accept the individual.

Added new subsection (c) to W&I Code Section 5150.3 allowing a person being transported for a 5150 assessment to affirmatively express a preference regarding which facility they would like to be taken to. The peace officer may consider this preference but transport must not unreasonably delay care or excessively deviate from the closest appropriate destination.

New Section 5150.3 added to the Welfare and Institutions Code requiring a peace officer transporting a person on a Section 5150 mental health hold to take them to the closest designated facility for assessment, geographically or by time, from where custody was taken. If that facility cannot accept the person and an emergency department becomes the destination, the person must go to the nearest appropriate emergency department.

The bill title and legislative digest were updated to reflect that the act now relates to both emergency medical services and mental health, expanding the bill's subject matter beyond its original EMS-only focus.

New Article 4 (Section 1797.280) added to the Health and Safety Code creating a standalone quarterly reporting requirement for ALL law enforcement transports to emergency departments, separate from the transport destination rules in Article 7.8. This is broader than the original reporting provision which only covered transports conducted under the new chapter.

The new reporting section (1797.280) adds a required data element: the reason for transport, specifically whether the person was being transported for a Section 5150 mental health assessment or for a non-behavioral health medical emergency.

Minor language cleanup in Section 1797.287(b): changed from 'This section shall does not apply to transports involving' to 'This section does not apply under any of the following circumstances,' clarifying the structure of the exceptions list.

Removed the provision allowing the Attorney General to bring a civil action for injunctive relief or civil penalties for violations of the chapter. Enforcement is now limited to administrative civil penalties (up to $25,000 per pattern of violation) imposed by the Emergency Medical Services Authority.

Added a new exception to the nearest-appropriate-ED requirement for transports during exigent circumstances of a mass casualty incident or a declared local emergency under Government Code Section 8680.9.

Added a new exception allowing transport to the next nearest appropriate ED when a receiving hospital has formally declared diversion or is otherwise unavailable, provided that status is affirmatively communicated to the transporting officer by a public safety answering point, EMS provider, or hospital during transport.

Added a new subdivision (e) clarifying that the section does not require a peace officer to independently determine hospital diversion status, limiting the officer's duty to relying on information affirmatively communicated to them.

Expanded the alternative destination site provision to add a fallback rule: if an alternative destination site (sobering center, behavioral health crisis center, etc.) is unable to accept the individual and the ED becomes the chosen destination, the individual must be transported to the nearest appropriate ED to where the officer first assumed custody.

Changed the definition of 'nearest appropriate emergency department' from 'geographically closest' to 'closest, geographically or by time,' allowing time-based proximity (e.g., traffic conditions) to factor into the determination.

The entire amendment to Penal Code Section 803 (criminal statutes of limitation) was removed from the bill. This included provisions on tolling for fraud offenses, DNA identification, hidden recordings, hit-and-run cases, and other criminal procedure matters. The bill now focuses exclusively on EMS transport requirements.

The definition of 'nearest appropriate emergency department' in Section 1797.286(b) was changed from requiring the facility to be 'geographically closest' to requiring it to be 'geographically closest, geographically or by time.' This allows law enforcement to consider travel time rather than just straight-line distance when selecting a destination.

Section 1797.287(a) now requires transport to the nearest appropriate emergency department 'pursuant to Section 1797.114,' adding a cross-reference to the existing EMS destination protocol statute. This ties the new law enforcement transport requirement to the established regulatory framework for EMS destinations.

Added an entirely new Article 7.8 (Sections 1797.285-1797.289) to Chapter 4 of Division 2.5 of the Health and Safety Code, expanding the bill from a technical Penal Code fix into a comprehensive law on law enforcement medical transport practices.

Fiscal committee determination changed from 'no' to 'yes' and state-mandated local program changed from 'no' to 'yes', reflecting the new obligations imposed on local law enforcement agencies.

Requires law enforcement agencies transporting a person to an emergency department to use the nearest appropriate emergency department (defined as the licensed general acute care hospital ED geographically closest to where the officer first assumed custody), with exceptions for trauma, STEMI, stroke, or conditions covered by specialty destination protocols.

Requires each law enforcement agency to submit quarterly reports to the EMS Authority including origin location, destination facility, date and time, stated rationale for destination selection, whether the destination was the nearest appropriate ED or an alternative site, and demographic information excluding personally identifiable information.

Requires the EMS Authority to publish annual aggregate reports on its internet website based on the quarterly data submitted by law enforcement agencies.

Defines 'law enforcement agency' as any city police department, county sheriff's department, or other public agency employing peace officers, and 'nearest appropriate emergency department' as the closest licensed general acute care hospital ED to where custody was first assumed.

Grants the EMS Authority regulatory oversight power to conduct audits, require corrective action plans, and impose administrative civil penalties up to $25,000 per pattern of violation. Also authorizes the Attorney General to bring civil actions for injunctive relief or civil penalties.

Added a state mandate reimbursement provision requiring the state to reimburse local agencies for costs mandated by the bill if the Commission on State Mandates determines such costs exist.

Corrected a drafting error in Penal Code Section 803(d) where 'no time time, up to a maximum of three years years' was fixed to 'time, up to a maximum of three years' - this was the original purpose of the bill.