BILL NUMBER: AB 1241 CHAPTERED
BILL TEXT
CHAPTER 396
FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE SEPTEMBER 17, 2003
APPROVED BY GOVERNOR SEPTEMBER 16, 2003
PASSED THE ASSEMBLY SEPTEMBER 2, 2003
PASSED THE SENATE AUGUST 28, 2003
AMENDED IN SENATE JULY 10, 2003
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JUNE 2, 2003
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 29, 2003
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 21, 2003
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Parra
(Principal coauthor: Assembly Member Maze)
(Coauthors: Assembly Members Calderon, Cogdill, McCarthy, and
Samuelian)
(Coauthors: Senators Ashburn, Florez, and Kuehl)
FEBRUARY 21, 2003
An act to add and repeal Section 128401 of the Health and Safety
Code, relating to health professions.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 1241, Parra. Nursing education scholarships.
Existing law establishes the Registered Nurse Education Fund,
consisting of specified fees, and administered by the Office of
Statewide Health Planning and Development, for purposes of funding
the Registered Nurse Education Program within the foundation, which
provides scholarships and loans to nursing students meeting specified
criteria. Under existing law, the Health Professions Education
Foundation is a nonprofit public health benefit organization
established to assist the office with various duties relating to the
promotion of health professions education throughout the state.
This bill would require the office, until January 1, 2009, to
establish, by regulation, the statewide Associate Degree Nursing
(A.D.N.) Scholarship Pilot Program and to allocate a portion of the
funds contained in the Registered Nurse Education Fund for purposes
of providing scholarships to associate degree nursing students in
counties determined to have the most need based on designated
criteria. Scholarship recipients would, pursuant to these
provisions, be required to meet specified requirements. The bill
would require the Health Professions Education Foundation to consider
specified factors when selecting program recipients, and would
authorize the foundation to accept private or federal funds for
purposes of the pilot program.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. (a) The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:
(1) There is a severe shortage of registered nurses in California.
Currently, California ranks 49th out of the 50 states in the number
of registered nurses per 100,000 persons. The central valley in the
state suffers from the least number of nurses per capita.
(2) The Health Professions Education Foundation is a nonprofit
public benefit corporation established to assist the Office of
Statewide Health Planning and Development with the provision of
scholarships and loan repayment grants to health professional
students throughout California who are willing to practice in
medically underserved areas. The foundation accomplishes its mission
by making recommendations to the Director of Statewide Health
Planning and Development with respect to the award of scholarships
and loan repayment grants to health professional students from
economically disadvantaged backgrounds and demographically
underrepresented groups who are committed to practicing in
underserved areas.
(3) To assist in addressing California's nursing shortage,
including the severe nursing shortage in the central valley, a
statewide associate degree nursing scholarship pilot program is
necessary.
(b) It is the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation to
establish a scholarship program for nursing students.
SEC. 2. Section 128401 is added to the Health and Safety Code, to
read:
128401. (a) The Office of Statewide Health Planning and
Development shall adopt regulations establishing the statewide
Associate Degree Nursing (A.D.N.) Scholarship Pilot Program.
(b) Scholarships under the pilot program shall be available only
to students in counties determined to have the most need. Need in a
county shall be established based on consideration of all the
following factors:
(1) Counties with a registered nurse to population ratio equal or
less than 500 registered nurses per 100,000 individuals.
(2) County unemployment rate.
(3) County level of poverty.
(c) A scholarship recipient shall be required to complete, at a
minimum, an associate degree in nursing and work in a medically
underserved area in California upon obtaining his or her license from
the Board of Registered Nursing.
(d) The Health Professions Education Foundation shall consider the
following factors when selecting recipients for the A.D.N.
Scholarship Pilot Program:
(1) An applicant's economic need, as established by the federal
poverty index.
(2) Applicants who demonstrate cultural and linguistic skills and
abilities.
(e) The pilot program shall be funded from the Registered Nurse
Education Fund established pursuant to Section 128400 and
administered by the Health Professions Education Foundation within
the office. The Health Professions Education Foundation shall
allocate a portion of the moneys in the fund for the pilot program
established pursuant to this section, in addition to moneys otherwise
allocated pursuant to this article for scholarships and loans for
associate degree nurse students.
(f) No additional staff or General Fund operating costs shall be
expended for the pilot program.
(g) The Health Professions Education Foundation may accept private
or federal funds for purposes of the A.D.N. Scholarship Pilot
Program.
(h) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1,
2009, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted
statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2009, deletes or extends
that date.