Asm. Brian Maienschein

Existing law makes it a felony for anyone to knowingly use sperm, ova, or embryos in assisted reproduction technology, for any purpose other than that indicated by the sperm, ova, or embryo provider's signature on a written consent form, and to knowingly implant sperm, ova, or embryos, through the use of assisted reproduction technology, into a recipient who is not the sperm, ova, or embryo provider, without the signed written consent of the sperm, ova, or embryo provider and recipient. Except in specified cases, existing law requires that prosecution for a felony be commenced within 3 years after the commission of the offense. This bill would instead require a criminal complaint for those crimes involving the unlawful use or implantation of sperm, ova, or embryos be filed within one year after the discovery of the offense or within one year after the offense could have reasonably been discovered. The bill would apply that one-year statute of limitations to those crimes that are committed on or after January 1, 2021, and to those crimes for which the statute of limitations that was in effect before January 1, 2021, has not run as of January 1, 2021.

Existing federal law defines a voluntary employees' beneficiary association as an organization composed of a voluntary association of employees that provides for the payment of life, sick, accident, or similar benefits to members, their dependents, or designated beneficiaries. Existing federal law defines a welfare plan as any plan, fund, or program established or maintained by an employer or employee organization, or both, for the purpose of providing participants or their beneficiaries specified benefits, such as medical, surgical, or hospital care or benefits. Existing law further defines a multiemployer plan as a plan to which more than one employer is required to contribute, that is maintained pursuant to one or more collective bargaining agreements between one or more employee organizations and more than one employer, and that meets other specified requirements. 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. Existing law exempts specified persons or plans from the requirements of the act and authorizes the Director of the Department of Managed Health Care (director) to exempt additional specified persons or plans if the director finds, among other things, that the exemption is in the public interest. Under existing law, upon the request of the Director of Health Care Services, the director must exempt a county-operated pilot program contracting with the State Department of Health Care Services, and may exempt a non-county-operated pilot program, subject to any conditions the Director of Health Care Services deems appropriate. Existing law also exempts a health care service plan operated by a city, county, city and county, public entity, political subdivision, or public joint labor management trust that satisfies certain criteria, including that the plan requires providers to be reimbursed solely on a fee-for-service basis. This bill would authorize the director, no later than May 1, 2021, to authorize 2 pilot programs, one in northern California and one in southern California, under which providers approved by the department may undertake risk-bearing arrangements with a voluntary employees' beneficiary association with enrollment of more than 100,000 lives, notwithstanding the fee-for-service requirement described above, or a trust fund that is a welfare plan and a multiemployer plan with enrollment of more than 25,000 lives, for independent periods of time beginning no earlier than January 1, 2022, to December 31, 2025, inclusive, if certain criteria are met, including that each risk-bearing provider is registered with the department as a risk-based organization and holds or will obtain a limited or restricted license, as applicable. The bill would require the association or trust fund and each health care provider participating in each pilot program to be responsible for providing certain services, as specified, to report to the department information regarding cost savings and clinical patient outcomes compared to a fee-for-service payment model, and would require the department to report those findings to the Legislature no later than January 1, 2027. The bill would require pilot program participants to reimburse the department for reasonable regulatory costs of up to $500,000. The bill would repeal these provisions on January 1, 2028.

Existing law provides for various public social services programs, including, among others, the California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) program, under which each county provides cash assistance and other benefits to qualified low-income families and individuals. Existing law also provides for various funding programs under which state agencies allocate or grant funding to specified entities for purposes of addressing various issues relating to homelessness. This bill would require a recipient, as defined, that receives state funds for specified CalWORKs programs related to homeless assistance, the Housing and Disability Income Advocacy Program, or state funds appropriated in the Budget Act of 2019 for a Whole Person Care pilot program, to submit a report containing specified information regarding the use of state funds to the appropriate agency. The bill would require the recipient to submit that report on a form and method provided by the agency annually. This bill would require every agency to post all reports received on its internet website within 30 days of receipt and provide notice of the posting to specified offices and committees of the Legislature. The bill would also require every agency to aggregate all reports received by October 1 of every year into one report and send the report to the Department of Finance by December 1 of every year, commencing with the year 2021. The bill would also require the Department of Finance to post the aggregated report on its internet website by December 31 of every year, commencing with the year 2021, in a manner that is easily accessible by the public and provide notice of the posting to the Legislature, as provided. By requiring counties to provide reports relating to CalWORKs, 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, 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) The California Constitution provides for the abolition of municipal courts and their unification within the superior courts, as specified. This bill would conform various statutory provisions of law to the abolition of municipal courts and their unification within the superior courts, including, among others, repealing provisions relating to the responsibilities of a county board of supervisors for court facilities and operation. The bill would also make related statutory changes with respect to the operations of the superior courts, including, among others, responsibilities for court security for the superior courts, the duties of the Judicial Council to establish a task force on county law libraries, and provisions related to specific county courts. (2) Existing law authorizes the Board of Supervisors of San Bernardino County to impose a surcharge on specified filings in superior court to fund certain San Bernardino courthouse expenditures. This bill will repeal this authorization on January 1, 2026. (3) Existing law establishes the Task Force on Court Facilities and requires the Judicial Council, the Department of General Services, the Department of Finance, and the Legislative Analyst to provide specific support for the task force. Existing law required the task force, among other things, to submit a final report to the Judicial Council, the Legislature, and the Governor on or before July 1, 2001, relating to trial and appellate court facilities and the effects of trial court consolidation. Existing law prohibits the findings of the task force from being considered evidence in any action to compel a county to provide facilities that the trial court contends are necessary and suitable. This bill repeals the establishment of the Task Force on Court Facilities but maintains the prohibition relating to the findings of the task force.

Existing law, the Knox-Keene Health Care Service Plan Act of 1975, provides for licensure and regulation of health care service plans by the Department of Managed Health Care and makes a willful violation of that act a crime. Existing law also provides for the regulation of health insurers by the Department of Insurance. Existing law requires health care service plan contracts and health insurance policies that provide hospital, medical, or surgical coverage to provide coverage for the diagnosis and medically necessary treatment of severe mental illnesses, as defined, of a person of any age. Existing law also requires health care service plans and health insurers, by July 1, 2019, to develop maternal mental health programs, as specified. This bill would require health care service plans and health insurers, by July 1, 2021, to provide access to a telehealth consultation program that meets specified criteria and provides providers who treat children and pregnant and certain postpartum persons with access to a mental health consultation program, as specified. The bill would require the consultation by a mental health clinician with expertise appropriate for pregnant, postpartum, and pediatric patients to be conducted by telephone or telehealth video, and to include guidance on the range of evidence-based treatment options, screening tools, and referrals. The bill would require health care service plans and insurers to communicate information relating to the telehealth program at least twice a year in writing. The bill would require health care service plans and health insurers to monitor data pertaining to the utilization of the program to facilitate ongoing quality improvements, as necessary, and to provide a description of the program to the appropriate department. The bill would exempt certain specialized health care service plans and health insurers from these provisions. Because a willful violation of the bill's requirement by a health care service plan 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.

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 disability insurers by the Department of Insurance. Existing law, known as the California Mental Health Parity Act, requires every health care service plan contract or disability insurance policy issued, amended, or renewed on or after July 1, 2000, that provides hospital, medical, or surgical coverage to provide coverage for the diagnosis and medically necessary treatment of severe mental illnesses of a person of any age, and of serious emotional disturbances of a child under the same terms and conditions applied to other medical conditions, as specified. Existing law requires those benefits to include, among other things, outpatient services, inpatient hospital services, partial hospital services, and prescription drugs, if the plan contract or policy includes coverage for prescription drugs. This bill would revise and recast those provisions, and would instead require a health care service plan contract or disability insurance policy issued, amended, or renewed on or after January 1, 2021, to provide coverage for medically necessary treatment of mental health and substance use disorders, as defined, under the same terms and conditions applied to other medical conditions. The bill would prohibit a health care service plan or disability insurer from limiting benefits or coverage for mental health and substance use disorders to short-term or acute treatment. The bill would revise the covered benefits to include basic health care services, as defined, intermediate services, and prescription drugs. This bill would require a health care service plan or disability insurer that provides hospital, medical, or surgical coverage to base medical necessity determinations and the utilization review criteria the plan or insurer, and any entity acting on the plan's or insurer's behalf, applies to determine the medical necessity of health care services and benefits for the diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of mental health and substance use disorders, on current generally accepted standards of mental health and substance use disorder care. The bill would require the health care service plan or insurer to apply specified clinical criteria and guidelines in conducting utilization review of the covered health care services and benefits and would prohibit the plan or insurer from applying different, additional, or conflicting criteria than the criteria and guidelines in the specified sources. The bill would authorize the Director of the Department of Managed Health Care or the Insurance Commissioner, as applicable, to assess administrative or civil penalties, as specified, for violation of the requirements relating to utilization review. The bill would make any provision in a health care service plan issued, delivered, amended, or renewed on or after January 1, 2021, that reserves discretionary authority to the plan, or an agent of the plan, to determine eligibility for benefits or coverage, interprets the terms of the contract, or provides standards of interpretation or review that are inconsistent with California law, void and unenforceable, as specified. The bill would declare that its provisions are severable. Because a willful violation of these requirements with respect to health care service plans would be a 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 no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

Existing law provides that a contract is extinguished by its rescission and sets forth methods for the rescission of a contract. Existing law authorizes a buyer to cancel certain home solicitation contracts or offers until midnight of the 3rd business day after the day on which the buyer signs an agreement or offer to purchase which complies with specified requirements. Existing law authorizes a buyer to cancel a home solicitation contract written for certain home improvement work until midnight of the 3rd business day after the buyer receives a signed and dated copy of the contract or offer to purchase that complies with specified requirements. Existing law requires contracts for a home solicitation contract or offer to include a notice of cancellation form with specified statement's as to the buyer's right to cancel. Existing law permits a buyer to provide a seller an express waiver to this right to cancel, if the contract meets other specified requirements. Existing law also provides a buyer a similar right to cancel a seminar sales solicitation contract or offer and imposes similar requirements to provide a notice of cancellation to the buyer. Existing law requires specific provisions and requirements for home improvement contracts, as defined, that are not governed by the provisions described above, and service and repair contracts. Existing law requires these contracts to include a notice regarding the buyer's 3-day right to cancel. Existing law authorizes the legislative body of a public agency, as defined, to determine that it would be convenient, advantageous, and in the public interest to designate an area within which authorized public agency officials and property owners may enter into voluntary contractual assessments to finance certain improvements. Existing law prohibits a public agency from permitting a property owner meeting certain criteria to participate in any program established pursuant to these provisions for specified purposes unless the property owner is given the right to cancel the contractual assessment without penalty or obligation before midnight on the 3rd business day after a specified date. Existing law also requires a financing estimate and disclosure document to be provided to the property owner prior to entering into the voluntary contractual assessment. Existing law requires the document to include, among other things, a description of the property owner's right to cancel. This bill would extend the period of time to cancel the contracts or offers described above from 3 to 5 business days if the buyer or property owner is a senior citizen, as defined, for contracts entered into, or offers to purchase conveyed, on or after January 1, 2021. The bill would also make conforming changes. This bill would incorporate additional changes to Section 5898.17 of the Streets and Highways Code proposed by AB 1551 to be operative only if this bill and AB 1551 are enacted and this bill is enacted last.