Existing law requires specified state agencies to participate in a prescription drug bulk purchasing program, authorizes the Department of General Services to enter into exclusive or nonexclusive contracts on a bid or negotiated basis with manufacturers and suppliers of single-source or multisource drugs and to obtain from those manufacturers and suppliers discounts, rebates, or refunds based on quantities purchased insofar as permissible under federal law, and authorizes the department to appoint and contract with a pharmaceutical benefits manager, as specified. Existing law authorizes the Department of General Services to explore additional strategies for managing prescription drug costs and investigate and implement those strategies in consultation with other specified state agencies. This bill would revise these provisions and instead require the department to convene the California Pharmaceutical Collaborative cochaired by the Deputy Director of the Procurement Division of the department and the Assistant Secretary of California Health and Human Services to address the rising cost of pharmaceuticals. The bill would require the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, the Department of Veterans Affairs, the California Health and Human Services Agency, the Department of Finance, the Government Operations Agency, and the Labor and Workforce Development Agency, among other entities, to each appoint a representative to the collaborative and to participate as members. The bill would also require the Speaker of the Assembly and the President pro Tempore of the Senate each to appoint one member to the collaborative. The bill would require the collaborative to perform specified functions, including, among other things, coordinating best value clinical treatment protocols among members of the collaborative, leveraging state and local governmental efficiencies and methodologies to achieve best value procurement, purchasing, and negotiating with manufacturers for discounts on pharmaceuticals, and acting as a forum for discussion where issues of interest related to pharmaceuticals can be identified and addressed. The bill would authorize the Department of General Services to contract with manufacturers and suppliers of pharmaceuticals and to appoint and contract with a pharmaceutical benefits manager, as specified. The bill would require the State Department of State Hospitals, the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, and the State Department of Developmental Services to participate in the prescription drug bulk purchasing program authorized by these provisions and permit any state, district, county, city, municipal, or public agency governmental entity to elect to participate in the coordinated purchasing program. The bill would require the Department of General Services, on or before July 1, 2018, and annually until 2022, to submit a report to the appropriate policy and fiscal committees of the Legislature on the activities of the collaborative, including the number, and a description, of the contracts entered into with pharmaceutical benefits managers or other pharmaceutical drug purchasing agents, the number and a description of entities that elect to participate in pharmaceutical purchasing coordinated by the collaborative, other options and strategies that have been or will be undertaken by the collaborative, the progress made with regard to the investigation and implementation of options and strategies to achieve the greatest savings on pharmaceuticals, and the estimated cost savings attributable to activities that have been or will be undertaken by the collaborative.
Sponsored bills
This measure would recognize August 15, 2017, as India's Independence Day and would urge all Californians to join in celebrating India's independence.
(1) Existing law establishes the California State University, under the administration of the Trustees of the California State University; the University of California, under the administration of the Regents of the University of California; the California Community Colleges, under the administration of the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges; and independent institutions of higher education as the 4 segments of postsecondary education in this state. This bill would express the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation to reduce the incidence of hunger and homelessness among college students in California. (2) Existing law requires each public and private postsecondary educational institution that is located in a county that participates in the Restaurant Meals Program to apply to become an approved food vendor for the program, if the institution operates any qualifying food facilities on campus, or to provide contracting on-campus food vendors with specified information about the program. This bill would provide definitions of "on-campus food vendors" and "qualifying food facility" for purposes of this provision. (3) Existing federal law provides for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) , known in California as CalFresh, formerly the Food Stamp Program, under which supplemental nutrition assistance benefits allocated to the state by the federal government are distributed to eligible individuals by each county. Under existing law, households are eligible to receive CalFresh benefits to the extent permitted by federal law. Existing federal law provides that students who are enrolled in college or other institutions of higher education at least half time are not eligible for SNAP benefits unless they meet one of several specified exemptions, including participating in specified employment training programs. Existing state law provides that, for the purposes of determining eligibility, certain educational programs, as determined by the State Department of Social Services, shall be considered employment training programs, thereby qualifying a student participating in one of those programs for an exemption, unless prohibited by federal law. Existing law also requires the State Department of Social Services, in consultation with representatives from other specified organizations, to establish a protocol to identify and verify all potential exemptions and to identify and verify participation in educational programs, including self-initiated placements, that would qualify a student for an exemption. This bill would express legislative intent to clarify educational policies for purposes of improving access for low-income students to the CalFresh program. For purposes of the federal regulation, the bill would specify the definition of half-time college enrollment. The bill would also require the Student Aid Commission to provide written notice to recipients of Cal Grant awards who qualify for participation in the CalFresh program under the federal regulation. This bill would require the Department of Social Services to maintain and regularly update a list of programs identified pursuant to existing law because they meet the employment training exemption set in the federal regulation. The bill would also require the department to issue and maintain instructions for county human services agencies to verify exemptions to the CalFresh student eligibility rules for students who participate in these programs, as specified. To the extent that this provision would impose new duties on county human services agencies, it would constitute a state-mandated local program. (4) Existing law requires the Department of Social Services to implement the provisions described in (3) above by all-county letters or similar instructions beginning no later than October 1, 2015, until regulations are adopted, and further requires the department to adopt regulations on or before October 1, 2017. Existing law also requires the department to seek and obtain federal approval, as specified, prior to publishing that guidance or regulation, if the United States Department of Agriculture requires federal approval. This bill would adjust the dates for the implementation and adoption of regulations. The bill would delete the provision relating to federal approval. (5) 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 the statutory provisions noted above.
This measure would declare June 27, 2017, as the second annual Robotics Technology Day.
Existing law provides for the issuance and enforcement of protective orders in cases involving domestic violence. Existing law provides for a Uniform Interstate Enforcement of Domestic Violence Protection Orders Act, which authorizes the enforcement of a valid foreign protection order in a tribunal of this state under certain conditions. Existing law establishes a Domestic Violence Restraining Order System for purposes of registering protection orders, as specified, which is administered by the Department of Justice. This bill would enact the Uniform Recognition and Enforcement of Canadian Domestic Violence Protection Orders Act, which would authorize the enforcement of a valid Canadian domestic violence protection order in a tribunal of this state under certain conditions. The bill would prescribe the criteria for a determination of the validity of a protection order under these provisions, as specified, and would authorize the registration of such a protection order in the Domestic Violence Restraining Order System. The bill would require a law enforcement officer of this state to enforce a protection order under these provisions upon determining that there is probable cause to believe that a valid protection order exists and has been violated. By imposing new duties on law enforcement agencies, this bill would create 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, 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 the statutory provisions noted above.
This measure would proclaim and acknowledge the month of June 2017 as Elder and Vulnerable Adult Abuse Awareness Month.
This measure would declare June 28, 2017, as California Nonprofits Day and recognize the importance of nonprofit organizations to the economy and well-being of this state.
This measure would recognize June 12, 2017, as the 119th Anniversary of Philippine Independence and would call upon the people of the state to observe the month of June with appropriate ceremonies, programs, and activities.
This measure would call on the United States Congress and the President of the United States to take appropriate measures to facilitate stability in the Korean region, build goodwill that is conducive to peace on the Korean Peninsula, and minimize potential negative impacts to the South Korean economy, ensuring that the trade relationship between California and South Korea can continue to flourish.