SB 304

Bill Subjects

Abstract

(1) Existing law provides for the licensure and regulation of physicians and surgeons by the Medical Board of California. Existing law authorizes the board to employ an executive director. Existing law provides that those provisions will be repealed on January 1, 2014, and, upon repeal, the board is subject to review by the Joint Sunset Review Committee. This bill would instead repeal those provisions on January 1, 2018, and subject the board to review by the appropriate policy committees of the Legislature. The bill would authorize the board to employ an executive director by, and with the approval of, the Director of Consumer Affairs. Existing law authorizes the board to issue a physician and surgeon's license to an applicant who acquired all or part of his or her medical education at a foreign medical school that is not recognized by the board if, among other requirements, the applicant has held an unlimited and unrestricted license as a physician and surgeon in another state or federal territory and has continuously practiced for a minimum of 10 years prior to the date of application or to an applicant who acquired any part of his or her professional instruction at a foreign medical school that has previously been disapproved by the board if, among other requirements, the applicant has held an unlimited and unrestricted license as a physician and surgeon in another state or federal territory and has continuously practiced for a minimum of 20 years prior to the date of application. For the purposes of these provisions, the board may combine the period of time that the applicant has held an unlimited and unrestricted license, but requires each applicant to have a minimum of 5 years continuous licensure and practice in a single state or federal territory. This bill would instead authorize the board to issue a physician and surgeon's license to an applicant who acquired any part of his or her medical education from an unrecognized medical school if, among other requirements, the applicant has held an unlimited and unrestricted license as a physician and surgeon in another state, a federal territory, or a Canadian province and has continuously practiced for a minimum of 10 years prior to the date of application, or from a disapproved medical school if, among other requirements, the applicant has held an unlimited and unrestricted license as a physician and surgeon in another state, a federal territory, or a Canadian province and has continuously practiced for a minimum of 12 years prior to the date of application. The bill would reduce the minimum number of years that each applicant must have continuous licensure and practice in a single state or federal territory to 2 years and permit the period of continuous licensure and practice to occur in a Canadian province. Existing law authorizes the Medical Board of California, if it publishes a directory of its licensees, as specified, to require persons licensed, as specified, to furnish specified information to the board for purposes of compiling the directory. This bill would require that an applicant and licensee who has an electronic mail address report to the board that electronic mail address no later than July 1, 2014. The bill would provide that the electronic mail address is to be considered confidential, as specified. Existing law requires an applicant for a physician and surgeon's certificate to obtain a passing score on Step 3 of the United States Medical Licensing Examination with not more than 4 attempts, subject to an exception. This bill would require an applicant to have obtained a passing score on all parts of that examination with not more than 4 attempts, subject to the exception. Existing law requires that a complaint, with exceptions, received by the board determined to involve quality of care, before referral to a field office for further investigation, meet certain criteria. This bill would expand the types of reports that are exempted from that requirement. Existing law provides for a civil penalty of up to $1,000 per day, as specified, to be imposed on a health care facility that fails to comply with a patient's medical record request, as specified, within 30 days. This bill would shorten the time limit for compliance to 15 days for those health care facilities that have electronic health records. Existing law establishes that corporations and other artificial legal entities have no professional rights, privileges, or powers. This bill would provide that those provisions do not apply to physicians and surgeons or doctors of podiatric medicine enrolled in approved residency postgraduate training programs or fellowship programs. (2) Existing law, the Licensed Midwifery Practice Act of 1993, provides for the licensure and regulation of licensed midwives by the Medical Board of California. Existing law specifies that a midwife student meeting certain conditions is not precluded from engaging in the practice of midwifery as part of his or her course of study, if certain conditions are met, including, that the student is under the supervision of a licensed midwife. This bill would require that to engage in those practices, the student is to be enrolled and participating in a midwifery education program or enrolled in a program of supervised clinical training, as provided. The bill would add that the student is permitted to engage in those practices if he or she is under the supervision of a licensed nurse-midwife. (3) Existing law provides for the regulation of registered dispensing opticians by the Medical Board of California and requires that the powers and duties of the board in that regard be subject to review by the Joint Sunset Review Committee as if those provisions were scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2014. This bill would instead make the powers and duties of the board subject to review by the appropriate policy committees of the Legislature as if those provisions were scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2018. (4) Existing law provides for the accreditation of outpatient settings, as defined, by the Medical Board of California, and requires outpatient settings to report adverse events, as defined, to the State Department of Public Health within specified time limits. Existing law provides for the imposition of a civil penalty in the event that an adverse event is not reported within the applicable time limit. This bill would instead require those outpatient settings to report adverse events to the Medical Board of California within specified time limits and authorize the board to impose a civil penalty if an outpatient setting fails to timely report an adverse event. (5) Existing law establishes the Medical Quality Hearing Panel, consisting of no fewer than 5 administrative law judges with certain medical training, within the Office of Administrative Hearings. Existing law authorizes those administrative law judges to issue interim orders suspending a license, or imposing drug testing, continuing education, supervision of procedures, or other license restrictions. Existing law requires that in all of those cases in which an interim order is issued, and an accusation is not filed and served within 15 days of the date in which the parties to the hearing have submitted the matter, the order be dissolved. Under existing law, if a healing arts practitioner is unable to practice his or her profession safely due to mental or physical illness, his or her licensing agency may order the practitioner to be examined by specified professionals. This bill would extend the time in which the accusation must be filed and served to 30 days from the date on which the parties to the hearing submitted the matter. The bill would also provide that a physician and surgeon's failure to comply with an order to be examined may constitute grounds for an administrative law judge of the Medical Quality Hearing Panel to issue an interim suspension order. Existing law establishes the Health Quality Enforcement Section within the Department of Justice to investigate and prosecute proceedings against licensees and applicants within the jurisdiction of the Medical Board of California, the California Board of Podiatric Medicine, the Board of Psychology, or any committee under the jurisdiction of the Medical Board of California. Existing law provides for the funding for the section, and for the appointment of a Senior Assistant Attorney General to the section to carry out specified duties. Existing law requires that all complaints or relevant information concerning licensees that are within the jurisdiction of the boards served by the Health Quality Enforcement Section be made available to the Health Quality Enforcement Section. Existing law establishes the procedures for processing the complaints, assisting the boards or committees in establishing training programs for their staff, and for determining whether to bring a disciplinary proceeding against a licensee of the boards. Existing law provides for the repeal of those provisions, as provided, on January 1, 2014. This bill would extend the operation of those provisions indefinitely and make those provisions applicable to the Physical Therapy Board of California and licensees within its jurisdiction. Existing law establishes, until January 1, 2014, a vertical enforcement and prosecution model for cases before the Medical Board of California and requires the board to report to the Governor and Legislature on that model by March 1, 2012. This bill would extend the date that report is due to March 1, 2015. Existing law creates the Division of Investigation within the Department of Consumer Affairs and requires investigators who have the authority of peace officers to be in the division, except that investigators of the Medical Board of California and the Dental Board of California who have that authority are not required to be in the division. This bill would require, effective July 1, 2014, that investigators of the Medical Board of California who have the authority of a peace officer be in the division and would protect the positions, status, and rights of those employees who are subsequently transferred as a result of these provisions. The bill would also, effective July 1, 2014, create within the Division of Investigation the Health Quality Investigation Unit. (6) Existing law, the Veterinary Medicine Practice Act, provides for the licensure and registration of veterinarians and registered veterinary technicians and the regulation of the practice of veterinary medicine by the Veterinary Medical Board. Existing law repeals the provisions establishing the board, and authorizing the board to appoint an executive officer, as of January 1, 2014. Under existing law, the board is subject to evaluation by the Joint Sunset Review Committee prior to its repeal. This bill would provide that those provisions are instead repealed as of January 1, 2016. The bill, upon repeal of the board, would require that the board be subject to a specifically limited review by the appropriate policy committees of the Legislature. Existing law authorizes the board, at any time, to inspect the premises in which veterinary medicine, veterinary dentistry, or veterinary surgery is being practiced and requires that those premises be registered with the board. Existing law requires the board to establish a regular inspection program that will provide for random, unannounced inspections. This bill would require the board to make every effort to inspect at least 20% of veterinary premises on an annual basis and would exclude from inspection those premises that are not registered with the board. Existing law requires the board to establish an advisory committee, the Veterinary Medicine Multidisciplinary Advisory Committee, to assist, advise, and make recommendations for the implementation of rules and regulations necessary to ensure proper administration and enforcement of specified provisions and to assist the board in its examination, licensure, and registration programs. Existing law requires the committee to consist of 7 members, with 4 licensed veterinarians, 2 registered veterinary technicians, and one public member. This bill would expand the number of members on the committee to 9 by including one veterinarian member of the board, to be appointed by the board president, and the registered veterinary technician of the board, both of whom would serve concurrently with their terms of office on the board. The bill would additionally require that the committee serve only in an advisory capacity to the board, as specified. The bill would make other technical and conforming changes. Existing law authorizes a registered veterinary technician or a veterinary assistant to administer a drug under the direct or indirect supervision of a licensed veterinarian when administered pursuant to the order, control, and full professional responsibility of a licensed veterinarian. Existing law limits access to controlled substances by veterinary assistants to persons who have undergone a background check and who, to the best of the licensee manager's knowledge, do not have any drug- or alcohol-related felony convictions. A violation of these provisions is a crime. Existing law repeals these provisions on January 1, 2015. This bill would instead require, until the later of January 1, 2015, or the effective date of a specified legislative determination, a licensee manager to conduct a background check on a veterinary assistant prior to authorizing him or her to obtain or administer a controlled substance by the order of a supervising veterinarian and to prohibit the veterinary assistant from obtaining or administering controlled substances if the veterinary assistant has a drug- or alcohol-related felony conviction. Because a violation of these provisions would be a crime, this bill imposes a state-mandated local program. This bill would require that, upon the later of January 1, 2015, or the effective date of a specified legislative determination, a veterinary assistant be designated by a licensed veterinarian and hold a valid veterinary assistant controlled substances permit from the board in order to obtain or administer controlled substances. The bill would, as part of the application for a permit, require an applicant to furnish a set of fingerprints to the Department of Justice for the purposes of conducting both a state and federal criminal history record check. The bill would require an applicant for a veterinary assistant controlled substances permit to apply for a renewal of his or her permit on or before the last day of the applicant's birthday month and to update his or her mailing or employer address with the board. The bill would authorize the board to collect a filing fee, not to exceed $100, from applicants for a veterinary assistant controlled substances permit. Because that fee would be deposited in the Veterinary Medical Board Contingent Fund, which is a continuously appropriated fund, the bill would make an appropriation. (7) This bill would incorporate additional changes to Section 11529 of the Government Code proposed by SB 670 that would become operative if this bill and SB 670 are enacted and this bill is chaptered last. (8) 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.