Under existing law, the California Emergency Services Act, the Governor is authorized to proclaim a state of emergency, as defined, under specified circumstances. The California Emergency Services Act also authorizes the governing body of a city, county, city and county, or an official designated by ordinance adopted by that governing body, to proclaim a local emergency, as defined. Existing law provides that a person has a privilege to refuse to disclose, and prevent another from disclosing, a confidential communication with specified persons, except in specified circumstances. This bill would, until January 1, 2024, create the Peer Support and Crisis Referral Services Pilot Program. The bill would, for purposes of the act, define a "peer support team" as a team composed of emergency service personnel, as defined, hospital staff, clergy, and educators who have been appointed to the team by a Peer Support Labor-Management Committee, as defined, and who have completed a peer support training course developed and delivered by the California Firefighter Joint Apprenticeship Committee or the Commission on Correctional Peace Officer Standards and Training, as specified. The bill would provide that a communication made by emergency service personnel or a peer support team member while the peer support team member provides peer support services, as defined, is confidential and shall not be disclosed in a civil, administrative, or arbitration proceeding. Notwithstanding that prohibition, the bill would authorize the disclosure of that communication under limited circumstances, including, among others, when disclosure is reasonably believed to be necessary to prevent death, substantial bodily harm, or commission of a crime, or when disclosure is reasonably believed to be required pursuant to the peer support policy, as specified. The bill would also provide that, except for an action for medical malpractice, a peer support team member providing peer support services as a member of a peer support team is not liable for damages, as specified, relating to an act, error, or omission in performing peer support services, unless the act, error, or omission constitutes gross negligence or intentional misconduct. The bill would further provide that a communication made by emergency service personnel to a crisis hotline or crisis referral service, as defined, is confidential and shall not be disclosed in a civil, administrative, or arbitration proceeding, except as specified.
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The existing federal Indian Gaming Regulatory Act of 1988 provides for the negotiation and execution of tribal-state gaming compacts for the purpose of authorizing certain types of gaming on Indian lands within a state. The California Constitution authorizes the Governor to negotiate and conclude tribal-state gaming compacts, subject to ratification by the Legislature. Existing law expressly ratifies a number of tribal-state gaming compacts, and amendments of tribal-state gaming compacts, between the State of California and specified Indian tribes. The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires a lead agency to prepare, or cause to be prepared, and certify the completion of, an environmental impact report on a project, as defined, that it proposes to carry out or approve that may have a significant effect on the environment, as defined, or to adopt a negative declaration if it finds that the project will not have that effect. This bill would ratify the tribal-state gaming compacts entered into between the State of California and the following Indian tribes: the La Jolla Band of Luiseño Indians, the Mechoopda Indian Tribe of Chico Rancheria, the San Pasqual Band of Mission Indians, the Torres-Martinez Desert Cahuilla Indians, and the Twenty-Nine Palms Band of Mission Indians. The bill would also ratify the amendment to the tribal-state gaming compact between the State of California and the Dry Creek Rancheria Band of Pomo Indians, executed on August 1, 2018, and the amendment to the tribal-state gaming compact between the State of California and the Karuk Tribe, executed on August 1, 2018. The bill would provide that, in deference to tribal sovereignty, certain actions related to these compacts and amended compacts are not projects for purposes of CEQA. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
(1) Existing law, the Knox-Keene Health Care Service Plan Act of 1975, provides for the licensure and regulation of health care service plans by the Department of Managed Health Care and makes a willful violation of the act a crime. Existing law also provides for the regulation of health insurers by the Department of Insurance. Existing law requires that health care service plans and health insurance policies, as specified, provide coverage for certain services and treatments, including emergency medical transportation services. This bill would require a health care service plan contract or a health insurance policy issued, amended, or renewed on or after January 1, 2019, to provide that if an enrollee, insured, or subscriber, as applicable, receives covered services from a noncontracting air ambulance provider, the enrollee, insured, or subscriber shall pay no more than the same cost sharing that the enrollee, insured, or subscriber would pay for the same covered services received from a contracting air ambulance provider, referred to as the in-network cost-sharing amount. The bill would specify that an enrollee, subscriber, or insured would not owe the noncontracting provider more than the in-network cost-sharing amount for services subject to the bill, as specified. The bill would allow a noncontracting provider to advance to collections only the in-network cost-sharing amount, as determined by the health care service plan or insurer, that the enrollee, insured, or subscriber has failed to pay. The bill would authorize a health care service plan, health insurer, or provider to seek relief in any court for the purpose of resolving a payment dispute, and would not prohibit a provider from using a health care service plan's or health insurer's existing dispute resolution processes. Because a willful violation of the bill's requirements relative to health care service plans would be a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (2) 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 law provides for the federal Medicare Program, which is a public health insurance program for persons 65 years of age and older and specified persons with disabilities who are under 65 years of age. This bill would require the department to set and maintain the Medi-Cal fee rate for air ambulance services provided by either fixed or rotary wing aircraft that is equal to a percentage of the rural Medicare rates for those services, as described and effective July 1, 2019, and to the extent federal financial participation is available and any necessary federal approvals have been obtained. The bill would specify that, commencing July 1, 2019, the amounts a noncontract emergency medical transport provider could collect if the beneficiary received medical assistance other than through enrollment in a Medi-Cal managed care health plan pursuant to a specified federal law would be the resulting fee-for-service payment schedule amounts after the application of the rate established pursuant to the bill. (3) Existing law, the Emergency Medical Air Transportation Act, effective until January 1, 2022, imposes a penalty of $4 until January 1, 2020, upon every conviction for a violation of the Vehicle Code or a local ordinance adopted pursuant to the Vehicle Code, other than a parking offense. The act requires the county or the court that imposed the fine to transfer the moneys collected pursuant to that act to the Treasurer for deposit into the Emergency Medical Air Transportation and Children's Coverage Fund. Under the act, moneys in the fund are made available, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to the State Department of Health Care Services for children's health care coverage and administrative costs relating to emergency medical air transportation provider payments, with the appropriated moneys remaining after payment of the administrative costs to be used as follows: (A) 20% of the amount for offsetting the state portion of the Medi-Cal reimbursement rate for emergency medical air transportation services, and (B) 80% of the amount for augmenting emergency medical air transportation reimbursement payments made through the Medi-Cal program. This bill, if the rate change to the Medi-Cal fee rate for air ambulance services is implemented pursuant to paragraph (2) , would delete the authorization to use the moneys appropriated from the fund for augmenting Medi-Cal emergency medical air transportation reimbursement payments, while maintaining the authorization to use the moneys for offsetting the state portion of the Medi-Cal reimbursement rate for those services. The bill would preserve the authorization to use the moneys for augmentation of payments for purposes of emergency medical air transportation that was provided before July 1, 2019, as specified. The bill would make conforming changes by deleting or amending related provisions. The bill would repeal these provisions on January 1, 2022. (4) 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.
The Control, Regulate and Tax Adult Use of Marijuana Act (AUMA) , an initiative measure approved as Proposition 64 at the November 8, 2016, statewide general election, authorizes a person who obtains a state license under AUMA to engage in commercial adult-use cannabis activity pursuant to that license and applicable local ordinances. The Medicinal and Adult-Use Cannabis Regulation and Safety Act (MAUCRSA) , among other things, consolidates the licensure and regulation of commercial medicinal and adult-use cannabis activities. Existing law requires an applicant for any type of MAUCRSA license to provide a statement, signed by the applicant under penalty of perjury, that the information provided is complete, true, and accurate. Existing law requires the issuance of MAUCRSA licenses to be valid for 12 months from the date of issuance and authorizes the license to be renewed annually. MAUCRSA prohibits a licensing authority from approving an application for a state license if approval of the state license will violate the provisions of certain local ordinances or regulations. MAUCRSA, until January 1, 2019, authorizes a state licensing authority to issue a temporary license if the applicant submits, among other things, a copy of a specified authorization issued by a local jurisdiction. MAUCRSA requires the temporary license to be valid for a period of 120 days and authorizes the temporary license to be extended for additional 90-day period at the discretion of the licensing authority. MAUCRSA establishes the Cannabis Control Appeals Panel and authorizes any person aggrieved by specified decisions of a licensing authority related to disciplining any license to appeal the licensing authority's written decision to the panel. MAUCRSA prohibits the refusal by the licensing authority to issue or extend a temporary license from entitling the applicant or licensee to a hearing or an appeal of the decision. This bill, until January 1, 2020, would authorize a licensing authority to issue a provisional license if specified conditions are met. By requiring additional applications to be signed under penalty of perjury, the bill would expand the scope of the crime of perjury, and would thereby impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would require the provisional annual license to be valid for 12 months and would prohibit the license from being renewed. The bill would require the provisions of MAUCRSA to apply to a provisional license in the same manner as to an annual license, except as specified. The bill would exempt the issuance of a provisional license from the California Environmental Quality Act. The bill would prohibit the refusal by the licensing authority to issue a provisional license or revocation or suspension by the licensing authority of a provisional license from entitling the applicant or licensee to a hearing or an appeal of the decision. 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. The Control, Regulate and Tax Adult Use of Marijuana Act, an initiative measure, authorizes the Legislature to amend the act to further the purposes and intent of the act with a 23 vote of the membership of both houses of the Legislature. This bill would declare that its provisions further specified purposes and intent of the Control, Regulate and Tax Adult Use of Marijuana Act. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
Existing law provides for the Medi-Cal program, which is administered by the State Department of Health Care Services, 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 law provides that federally qualified health center (FQHC) services and rural health clinic (RHC) services, as defined, are covered benefits under the Medi-Cal program, to be reimbursed, to the extent that federal financial participation is obtained, to providers on a per-visit basis. "Visit" is defined as a face-to-face encounter between a patient of an FQHC or RHC and specified health care professionals, including a physician. Under existing law, "physician," for these purposes, includes, but is not limited to, a physician and surgeon, an osteopath, and a podiatrist. This bill would authorize reimbursement for a maximum of 2 visits taking place on the same day at a single location if after the first visit the patient suffers illness or injury requiring additional diagnosis or treatment, or if the patient has a medical visit and a mental health visit or a dental visit, as defined. The bill would authorize an FQHC or RHC that currently includes the cost of a medical visit and a mental health visit that take place on the same day at a single location as a single visit for purposes of establishing the FQHC's or RHC's rate to apply for an adjustment to its per-visit rate, and after the department has approved that rate adjustment, to bill a medical visit and a mental health visit that take place on the same day at a single location as separate visits, in accordance with the bill. Implementation of these provisions would be contingent upon an appropriation in the annual Budget Act and the availability of federal financial participation. This bill would also make an FQHC or RHC visit to a licensed acupuncturist reimbursable on a per-visit basis. The bill would require the department, by January 1, 2020, to submit a state plan amendment to the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to reflect certain changes described in the bill, and to seek necessary federal approvals. This bill would incorporate additional changes to Section 14132.100 of the Welfare and Institutions Code proposed by AB 2428 to be operative only if this bill and AB 2428 are enacted and this bill is enacted last.
(1) Existing law establishes the Medi-Cal program, which is administered by the State Department of Health Care Services, 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 law provides that federally qualified health center (FQHC) services and rural health clinic (RHC) services are covered benefits under the Medi-Cal program to be reimbursed, to the extent that federal financial participation is obtained, to providers on a per-visit basis. This bill would, on or before March 1, 2019, require the department to establish a stakeholder process to assist the department in developing guidance for a FQHC or RHC to determine whether a payment would constitute an incentive payment that is prohibited from being reimbursed. The bill would further require the department to issue the guidance developed pursuant to the stakeholder process on or before July 1, 2019, and apply the guidance only to all FQHC and RHC payments starting on and after that issuance date. The bill would authorize the department to seek necessary federal approvals and require the department to promulgate regulations to implement these provisions. (2) This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
Existing law, the Knox-Keene Health Care Service Plan Act of 1975, provides for the licensure and regulation of health care service plans by the Department of Managed Health Care, and makes a willful violation of the act a crime. Existing law provides for the regulation of health insurers by the Department of Insurance. Existing law requires a health care service plan or health insurer that covers outpatient prescription drug benefits to provide coverage for specified prescription drugs, and requires cost sharing for outpatient prescription drugs to be reasonable so as to allow access to medically necessary outpatient prescription drugs. This bill would limit the amount a health care service plan or health insurer may require an enrollee or insured to pay at the point of sale for a covered prescription to the lesser of the applicable cost-sharing amount or the retail price. The bill would prohibit a health care service plan or health insurer from requiring a pharmacy to charge or collect a cost-sharing amount from an enrollee or insured that exceeds the total retail price for the prescription drug, and would provide that the payment rendered by an enrollee or insured would constitute the applicable cost sharing, as specified. The bill would require a pharmacy to inform a customer whether the retail price for a covered prescription is lower than the applicable cost-sharing amount, unless the pharmacy automatically charges the customer the lower price. If the customer pays the retail price, the bill would require the pharmacy to submit the claim to the health care service plan or health insurer in the same manner as if the customer had purchased the prescription drug by paying the cost-sharing amount when submitted by the network pharmacy. The bill would make a contract provision that is inconsistent with these provisions void and unenforceable. 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.
Existing law establishes a public school financing system that requires state funding for county superintendents of schools, school districts, and charter schools to be calculated pursuant to a local control funding formula, as specified. Existing law requires funding pursuant to the local control funding formula to include, in addition to a base grant, supplemental and concentration grant add-ons that are based on the percentage of certain categories of pupils, known as unduplicated pupils, served by the county superintendent of schools, school district, or charter school. Existing law includes among unduplicated pupils, a pupil who is classified as an English learner, eligible for a free or reduced-price meal, or a foster youth, as defined, and requires county superintendents of schools, school districts, and charter schools to submit and report data relating to these pupils. This bill, no later than the 2020–21 fiscal year, would include in that definition of "foster youth" a dependent child of a court of an Indian tribe, consortium of tribes, or tribal organization who is the subject of a petition filed in the tribal court in accordance with the tribe's law, provided the child would also meet one of the descriptions of specified existing law describing when a child may be adjudged a dependent child of the juvenile court. To the extent this provision would impose additional duties on county superintendents of schools, school districts, and charter schools in relation to submitting and reporting data relating to these pupils, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. Existing law requires the State Department of Education and the State Department of Social Services to enter into a memorandum of understanding on or before February 1, 2014, that requires the State Department of Social Services, at least once per week, to share disaggregated information related to foster youth with the State Department of Education. This bill would exempt the State Department of Social Services from collecting or sharing specified information relating to a dependent child of a court of an Indian tribe, consortium of tribes, or tribal organization as described above. 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.
(1) Existing law, the California Emergency Services Act, authorizes the Governor to proclaim a state of emergency, and local officials and local governments to proclaim a local emergency, when specified conditions of disaster or extreme peril to the safety of persons and property exist, and authorizes the Governor or the appropriate local government to exercise certain powers in response to that emergency. Existing law authorizes the Governor, during a state of emergency, to direct all state agencies to utilize and employ state personnel, equipment, and facilities to perform activities that are designed to prevent or alleviate actual and threatened damage due to that emergency. Existing law authorizes a state agency so directed to expend any of the moneys that have been appropriated to it in order to perform that activity. This bill would authorize the Governor, during a state of emergency, to direct all state agencies to utilize, employ, and direct state personnel, equipment, and facilities for the performance of any and all activities that are designed to allow community clinics and health centers to provide and receive reimbursement for services provided during or immediately following the emergency. The bill would authorize any agency directed by the Governor to perform those activities to expend any of the moneys that have been appropriated to it in order to perform those activities, irrespective of the particular purpose for which the moneys were originally appropriated. (2) Existing law, the Pharmacy Law provides for the licensure and regulation of pharmacists and pharmacies by the California State Board of Pharmacy. Existing law authorizes a pharmacy to furnish dangerous drugs only to specified persons or entities, and subjects certain pharmacies and persons who violate the provision to specified fines. Existing law authorizes a pharmacist to, in good faith, furnish a dangerous drug or device in reasonable quantities without a prescription during a federal, state, or local emergency, in order to further the health and safety of the public by complying with certain record-keeping requirements, and authorizes the board to waive any application of the Pharmacy Law during an emergency if the board determines that the waiver will aid in the protection of the public health or the provision of patient care. Existing law requires the board, during a declared federal, state, or local emergency, to allow for the employment of a mobile pharmacy in impacted areas under specified conditions, and authorizes the board to allow the temporary use of a mobile pharmacy when a pharmacy is destroyed or damaged under specified conditions. The Pharmacy Law authorizes certain clinics to purchase drugs at wholesale for administration or dispensing, under the direction of a physician or surgeon, to patients registered for care at the clinic, provided those clinics obtain a license from the board and comply with various requirements. This bill would expand the emergency provision described above to authorize a clinic licensed by the board to purchase drugs at wholesale for administration or dispensing to patients to furnish dangerous drugs or devices in reasonable quantities without a prescription during a federal, state, or local emergency, subject to the standards that apply to pharmacists as described above. The bill would also require the board, during an emergency, to allow for the employment of a mobile pharmacy clinic in impacted areas under specified conditions that are similar to the conditions that apply to a mobile pharmacy. The bill would authorize the board to continue to waive application of any provision of the Pharmacy Law for up to 90 days following the termination of the emergency if, in the board's opinion, the continued waiver will aid in the protection of public health or the provision of patient care. The bill would also make conforming changes.
Existing law, the Knox-Keene Health Care Service Plan Act of 1975, provides for the licensure and regulation of health care service plans by the Department of Managed Health Care and makes a willful violation of the act a crime. Existing law provides for the regulation of health insurers by the Department of Insurance. Existing law requires a health care service plan or health insurer that issues, sells, renews, or offers a health care service plan contract or health insurance policy, respectively, for health care coverage in this state to comply with minimum medical loss ratios. Existing law requires a health care service plan or health insurer, excluding specialized health care service plan contracts and specialized health insurance policies, to provide, no later than August 1, an annual rebate to each enrollee or insured under that coverage, on a pro rata basis, if the medical loss ratio of the amount of premium revenue expended by the plan or health insurer on the costs for reimbursement for clinical services and for activities that improve health care quality to the total amount of premium revenue is less than a certain percentage. Existing law requires the adoption of emergency regulations, pursuant to consultation between the departments, to implement those provisions. Existing law requires the medical loss ratio provisions to be implemented to the extent required by federal law and to comply with, and not exceed, the scope of specified federal laws, rules, and regulations. This bill would exempt only specialized health care service plan contracts and specialized health insurance policies that provide only dental or vision services from the annual rebate requirement. The bill would require the annual rebate to be provided to each enrollee or insured no later than September 30. The bill would repeal the emergency regulation and consultation requirements. The bill would revise the requirements relating to the specified federal provisions, to require instead that the medical loss ratio provisions be consistent with those federal provisions as in effect on January 1, 2017. The bill would delete certain obsolete provisions and would make other technical, nonsubstantive changes. Because a willful violation of the bill's requirements relative to health care service plans would be a crime, the 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 no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.