BILL NUMBER:  AB 2532
  VETOED	DATE: 09/22/2004




To the Members of the California State Assembly:

I am returning Assembly Bill 2532 without my signature.

A number of well-intentioned mandates have been placed upon
California hospitals in recent years, including nurse-to-patient
staffing ratios and seismic retrofit requirements.  Hospitals will be
spending billions of dollars in the coming years in order to comply
with these mandates.  As such, I believe we must carefully weigh
additional mandates on hospitals in order to ensure the financial
burden does not become too great or interfere with their ability to
offer quality health care.

Because I am concerned about the financial burden hospitals are
already under, I cannot support the costly mandate imposed on them by
AB 2532.  Although the goal of having all hospitals implement a
standardized lift policy that includes lift teams and modern
equipment is laudable, it need not be mandated in statute.
Procedures to limit injuries caused by the lifting patients should
already be a part of a hospitals mandatory Injury and Illness
Prevention Program (IIPP).  If an individual  believes a hospitals
IIPP is insufficient, they may file a claim with the Division of
Occupational Safety and Health.  I believe this existing statutory
protection and the accompanying workplace safety standards adopted by
the Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board are sufficient to
protect health care workers from injury.

Although I cannot support AB 2532, I encourage hospitals to review
their lift policies to determine the extent to which they can develop
lift teams and purchase machinery to assist in lifting patients.  I
also encourage hospitals to consider incorporating modern lift
technologies into new construction and significant renovation
projects, including their seismic retrofit activities.

For these reasons I am returning this bill without my signature.

Sincerely,



Arnold Schwarzenegger

Enrolled Bill ReportPage2Bill Number:  AB 2532 Author:  Hancock