Existing law, the Lanterman-Petris-Short Act, authorizes the appointment of a conservator of the person, of the estate, or of the person and the estate, for a person who is gravely disabled as a result of a mental health disorder or impairment by chronic alcoholism. The act also authorizes the appointment of a conservator, in the County of Los Angeles, the County of San Diego, or the City and County of San Francisco, for a person who is incapable of caring for the person's own health and well-being due to a serious mental illness and substance use disorder. Existing law establishes the hearsay rule, under which evidence of a statement is generally inadmissible if it was made other than by a witness while testifying at a hearing and is offered to prove the truth of the matter stated. Existing law sets forth exceptions to the hearsay rule to permit the admission of specified kinds of evidence. Under this bill, for purposes of an expert witness in any proceeding relating to the appointment or reappointment of a conservator pursuant to the above-described provisions, the statements of specified health practitioners or a licensed clinical social worker included in the medical record would not be hearsay. The bill would authorize the court to grant a reasonable continuance if an expert witness in a proceeding relied on the medical record and the medical record has not been provided to the parties or their counsel upon request within a reasonable time before the proceeding.
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Existing law, the Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act, provides a comprehensive set of procedures for the enforcement of express and implied warranties on consumer goods, as defined. Under existing law, every manufacturer making an express warranty with respect to an electronic or appliance product, including televisions, radios, audio or video recording equipment, major home appliances, antennas, and rotators, with a wholesale price to the retailer of not less than $50 nor more than $99.99 is required to make available to service and repair facilities sufficient service literature and functional parts to effect the repair of the product for at least 3 years after the date a product model or type was manufactured, regardless of whether the 3-year period exceeds the warranty period for the product. Existing law also requires every manufacturer making an express warranty with respect to an electronic or appliance product, as described above, with a wholesale price to the retailer of $100 or more, to make available to service and repair facilities sufficient service literature and functional parts to effect the repair of the product for at least 7 years after the date a product model or type was manufactured, regardless of whether the 7-year period exceeds the warranty period for the product. This bill would instead require the manufacturer of an electronic or appliance product, in the above-described circumstances and timeframes, to make available, on fair and reasonable terms, sufficient service literature, at no charge, and prescribed functional parts and tools, including documentation, tools, software and parts needed to disable the lock or function during the course of the diagnosis, maintenance, or repair of a product, to owners of the product, service and repair facilities, and service dealers. The bill would also require a service and repair facility or service dealer that is not an authorized facility or dealer of a manufacturer to provide a written notice containing specified information related to warranties to any customer seeking repair of an electronic or appliance product before the repair facility or service dealer repairs the product. This bill would define terms for its purposes, and would provide that the above-specified provisions do not require a manufacturer to divulge a trade secret, except as may be necessary to provide service literature, documentation, tools, and parts on fair and reasonable terms, and shall not be construed to require the distribution of a product's source code. Existing law authorizes a retail seller of consumer goods or an independent serviceman of consumer goods injured by the willful or repeated violation of the Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act to bring a legal action for the recovery of damages. Existing law provides that a court may award 3 times the amount at which actual damages are assessed plus reasonable attorneys fees. This bill would additionally authorize a service dealer, as defined, to bring a legal action pursuant to the above provisions.
Existing law, the Knox-Keene Health Care Service Plan Act of 1975 (Knox-Keene) , 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 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. This bill would require a health care service plan contract or health insurance policy issued, amended, or renewed on and after January 1, 2023, to provide coverage for coordinated specialty care (CSC) services for the treatment of early psychosis, composed of specified treatment modalities and affiliated activities including, but not limited to, case management, pharmacotherapy and medication management, psychotherapy, and outreach and recruitment activities. The bill would require those treatment modalities and affiliated activities to be billed and reimbursed as a bundle. The bill would require the CSC services provided to be consistent with specified provisions applicable to the treatment of mental health and substance use disorders. The bill would specify the membership of the CSC team. The bill would specify that these provisions do not apply to specified Medi-Cal managed care contracts entered into between the State Department of Health Care Services and a health care service plan for enrolled Medi-Cal beneficiaries. The bill would require the California Health and Human Services Agency, in consultation with the Mental Health Services Oversight and Accountability Commission, to commission a study to improve understanding, awareness, and accountability associated with psychosis, the duration of untreated psychosis, and its impacts. Among other components, the bill would require the study to document the annual prevalence rate for the onset of psychosis in California and the availability of coordinated specialty care services to Californians who experience a first episode of psychosis, and to recommend a state or county-based system, or both, to monitor outcomes associated with access to the most effective interventions and services in response to psychosis and those associated with the lack of access to effective interventions and services, as specified. The bill also would require the agency, in consultation with the commission, to develop and implement strategies to annually improve access to effective interventions for early psychosis, and to improve the access to, and quality of, care for persons with severe and persistent psychosis, as specified. Because a violation of certain requirements of the bill 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 provides for various programs at the state and local level for the treatment and support of people with severe mental illness, including providing emergency and outpatient mental health services. Existing law requires the State Department of Health Care Services to perform various functions with regard to the statewide delivery of mental health services, including, among other things, implementing a system of required performance reporting by local mental health programs. This bill would require the department to prepare a study that describes models of supportive health care services and available treatment options and resources for individuals with severe mental illness. The bill would require the department to submit the study to the Senate and Assembly Committees on Health on or before January 1, 2024.
This measure would recognize "Women Warriors" by proclaiming the week of March 14, 2022, to March 20, 2022, inclusive, as Women's Military History Week in California, recognize the hard-fought contributions of women to the military and freedom, and encourage Californians to honor the courageous sacrifices that women have made since the historic lifting of the ban on women in combat on January 24, 2013.
This measure would proclaim March 31, 2022, as Transgender Day of Visibility.