Existing law provides for the professional review of specified healing arts licentiates through a peer review process conducted by peer review bodies, as defined. Existing law requires the governing body of acute care hospitals to give great weight to the actions of peer review bodies and authorizes the governing body to direct the peer review body to investigate in specified instances. Where the peer review body fails to take action in response to that direction, existing law authorizes the governing body to take action against a licentiate. This bill would prohibit a member of a medical or professional staff from being required to alter or surrender staff privileges, status, or membership solely due to the termination of a contract between that member and a health care facility.Existing law provides various due process rights for licentiates who are the subject of a final proposed disciplinary action of a peer review body, including authorizing a licensee to request a hearing concerning that action. Existing law gives parties at the hearing certain rights, including the right to present and rebut evidence. Existing law requires the peer review body to adopt written provisions governing whether a licensee may be represented by an attorney and prohibits a peer review body from being represented by an attorney where a licensee is not so represented, except as specified.This bill would give both parties the right to be represented by an attorney, regardless of whether one of the parties declines that representation.
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Existing law, the Nursing Practice Act, provides for the licensure and regulation of registered nurses by the Board of Registered Nursing and makes a violation of the act a crime. Existing law requires a licensee renewing his or her license to submit proof to the board that during a specified time the licensee has been informed of developments in the registered nursing field either by pursuing a continuing education course offered by a provider approved by the board or by other means deemed equivalent by the board. Existing law requires the board to establish, by regulation, standards for continuing education. Existing law requires these standards to make a variety of alternative forms of continuing education available to licensees. Existing law requires the content of all courses of continuing education to be relevant to the practice of nursing. This bill would provide that continuing education courses, as specified, that advance or promote labor organizing on behalf of a union, or that advance or promote statutory or regulatory changes, political candidates, political advocacy, or political strategy shall not be considered content relevant to the practice of nursing and shall not be acceptable for meeting requirements for licensure renewal. The bill would also prohibit an approved provider from representing that such a continuing education course is acceptable for meeting requirements for licensure renewal and would require the board, subject to specified procedural requirements, to withdraw its approval of a provider that violates that requirement for no less than 5 years, as specified. Because a violation of these requirements by a provider would constitute 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. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
This measure would call upon the State Air Resources Board, prior to any regulatory action being taken consistent with the scoping plan for the implementation of the California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006, to perform an economic analysis that will give the State of California a more complete and accurate picture of the costs and benefits of the act's implementation. The measure would also call upon the Governor to use the authority granted by the act to adjust any applicable deadlines for regulations.
This measure would observe June 20, 2010, as Father's Day and recognize the contribution of fathers. This measure would also urge men to embrace the responsibilities of fathering a child and encourage parents to strengthen their relationship by attending and participating in marriage and relationship education classes. The measure would state the intent of the Legislature to explore ways to increase access to and participation in marriage and relationship education programs.
This bill would urge the President of the United States and the Congress to employ necessary measures to ensure that no terrorist or suspected terrorist detained at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba is permitted to enter California in custody or otherwise.
The Personal Income Tax Law authorizes various credits against the taxes imposed by that law, including a credit against those taxes in an amount equal to the lesser of 5% of the purchase price of a qualified principal residence, as defined, or $10,000, for purchases made between March 1, 2009, and before March 1, 2010, subject to specified restrictions. This bill would authorize a credit against those taxes in an amount equal to the lesser of 5% of the purchase price of a qualified principal residence, as defined, or $10,000, for purchases made between May 1, 2010, and on or before December 31, 2010, or on or after December 31, 2010, and before August 1, 2011, subject to specified restrictions, including the submission of a certification to the Franchise Tax Board by either the taxpayer or seller, made under the penalty of perjury, that the residence has either never been occupied or that the taxpayer is a first-time home buyer. By expanding the definition of an existing crime, this bill imposes 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. This bill would take effect immediately as a tax levy.
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 its provisions a crime. Existing law also provides for the regulation of health insurers by the Department of Insurance. Existing law requires contracts between plans or insurers and providers to be fair and reasonable and requires plans and insurers to reimburse a claim for covered services within a specified period of time of receiving the claim. This bill would, with respect to a contract between a health care service plan, specialized health care service plan, or insurer covering dental services and a dentist to provide dental services to enrollees or insureds, prohibit the contract from requiring a dentist to accept an amount set by the plan or insurer as payment for dental care services provided to an enrollee or insured that are not covered services under the enrollee's contract or the insured's policy. The bill would also prohibit a provider from charging more than his or her usual and customary rate for dental services not covered under a health care service plan contract or health insurance policy. The bill would require the evidence of coverage and disclosure form for a plan contract or health insurance policy covering dental services that is issued, amended, or renewed on or after July 1, 2011, to contain a specified statement regarding noncovered services. Because a willful violation of these requirements 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 prescribes procedures for the issuance of registered warrants and provides that a registered warrant is acceptable and may be used as security for the performance of any public or private trust or obligation. This bill would, if the Controller makes a specified determination, require a state agency to accept, from a person or entity, a registered warrant issued by the Controller and endorsed by that payee, at full face value, for the payment of any obligations owed by that payee to that state agency. The bill would specify that its requirements do not apply to certain obligations and would require the Controller, on or before the September 1 following the conclusion of a fiscal year in which a state agency is required to accept registered warrants pursuant to these provisions, to submit a report to the Joint Legislative Budget Committee. The bill would make its provisions inoperative on July 1, 2012, and would repeal them on January 1, 2013. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
Existing law provides for the professional review of specified healing arts licentiates through a peer review process. This bill would define the term "peer review" for purposes of those provisions. Under existing law, specified persons are required to file a report, designated as an "805 report," with a licensing board within 15 days after a specified action is taken against a person licensed by that board. This bill would also require specified persons to file a report with a licensing board within 15 days after a peer review body makes a decision or recommendation regarding the disciplinary action to be taken against a licentiate of that board based on the peer review body's determination, following formal investigation, that the licentiate may have engaged in various acts, including incompetence, substance abuse, excessive prescribing or furnishing of controlled substances, or sexual misconduct, among other things. The bill would authorize the board to inspect and copy certain documents in the record of that investigation. Existing law requires the board to maintain an 805 report for a period of 3 years after receipt. This bill would require the board to maintain the report electronically. Existing law authorizes the Medical Board of California, the Osteopathic Medical Board of California, and the Dental Board of California to inspect and copy certain documents in the record of any disciplinary proceeding resulting in action that is required to be reported in an 805 report. This bill would specify that the boards have the authority to also inspect, as permitted by other applicable law, any certified copy of medical records in the record of the disciplinary proceeding. Existing law requires specified healing arts boards to maintain a central file of their licensees containing, among other things, disciplinary information reported through 805 reports. Under this bill, if a court finds, in a final judgment, that the peer review resulting in the 805 report was conducted in bad faith and the licensee who is the subject of the report notifies the board of that finding, the board would be required to include that finding in the licensee's central file. Existing law requires the Medical Board of California, the Osteopathic Medical Board of California, and the California Board of Podiatric Medicine to disclose an 805 report to specified health care entities and to disclose certain hospital disciplinary actions to inquiring members of the public. Existing law also requires the Medical Board of California to post hospital disciplinary actions regarding its licensees on the Internet. This bill would prohibit those disclosures, and would require the Medical Board of California to remove certain information posted on the Internet, if a court finds, in a final judgment, that the peer review resulting in the 805 report or the hospital disciplinary action was conducted in bad faith and the licensee notifies the board of that finding. The bill would also require the Medical Board of California to include certain exculpatory or explanatory statements in those disclosures or postings and would require the board to post on the Internet a factsheet that explains and provides information on the 805 reporting requirements. Existing law also requires the Medical Board of California, the Osteopathic Medical Board of California, and the California Board of Podiatric Medicine to disclose to an inquiring member of the public information regarding enforcement actions taken against a licensee by the board or by another state or jurisdiction. This bill would also require those boards to make those disclosures regarding enforcement actions taken against former licensees. The bill would make related technical and nonsubstantive changes.
The existing California Renewables Portfolio Standard Program (RPS program) requires the Public Utilities Commission to implement annual procurement targets for the procurement of eligible renewable energy resources for all retail sellers, as defined, to achieve the targets and goals of the program. The existing definition of an eligible renewable energy resource includes certain small hydroelectric generation facilities, conduit hydroelectric facilities, and the incremental increase in electrical generation resulting from efficiency improvements (repowering) of existing larger hydroelectric facilities, subject to the condition that a new small or conduit hydroelectric facility or repowered facility not result in an adverse impact on instream beneficial uses or cause a change in the volume or timing of streamflow. This bill would provide that the new small or conduit hydroelectric facility or repowered facility that is an eligible renewable energy resource as of January 1, 2010, shall not lose eligibility if it causes a change in the volume or timing of streamflow, if those changes are required by license conditions approved, pursuant to the Federal Power Act, on or after January 1, 2010. An additional requirement for eligibility for the incremental increase in electrical generation resulting from repowering of an existing larger hydroelectric facility is that the facility has been certified within the immediately preceding 15 years by the State Water Resources Control Board pursuant to the federal Clean Water Act or by a California regional water quality control board to which the state board has delegated authority. This bill would adopt an alternative to that requirement for the Rock Creek Powerhouse hydroelectric generation facility. The bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.