BILL ANALYSIS
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 1980|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 1980
Author: Hayashi (D)
Amended: 6/29/10 in Senate
Vote: 21
SEN. BUS., PROF. & ECON. DEV. COMMITTEE : 6-0, 6/21/10
AYES: Negrete McLeod, Aanestad, Calderon, Correa, Florez,
Walters
NO VOTE RECORDED: Wyland, Oropeza, Yee
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : Senate Rule 28.8
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : Not relevant
SUBJECT : Healing arts: veterinary medicine
SOURCE : California Veterinary Medical Board
California Veterinary Medical Association
DIGEST : This bill changes the composition of the
Veterinary Medical Board (VMB); makes permanent the
multidisciplinary committee of the VMB and provides for
additional duties of the committee; eliminates the
Registered Veterinary Technician Committee; specifies that
the practice of veterinary medicine also includes physical
rehabilitation or musculoskeletal manipulation upon an
animal, unless otherwise authorized by regulation of the
VMB; prohibits the use of the title "registered veterinary
technician" unless registered with the VMB; requires
training for an "unregistered assistant" in the use of
CONTINUED
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radiation safety and techniques before they may operate
radiographic equipment; clarifies the reporting requirement
for veterinarians who must report any animal injuries
which occurred at a rodeo event; allows students in their
final year of study in a veterinary technology program to
perform tasks of a registered veterinary technician; and
exempts from liability veterinarians or registered
veterinarians who provide services during any state of war
emergency, a state of emergency, or local emergency.
ANALYSIS :
Existing law, the Business and Professions Code:
1.Provides for the examination, licensing, and regulation
of approximately 9,800 veterinarians and 4,300
registered veterinary technicians by the VMB in the
Department of Consumer Affairs.
2.Establishes the VMB which consists of seven members,
three of whom are public members and four of whom are
licensed veterinarians, and requires the Governor to
appoint the four licensed veterinarians and the Senate
Committee on Rules and the Speaker of the Assembly to
each appoint a public member, and specifies the
requirements for the veterinarian and public members of
the VMB.
3.Provides that the VMB shall become inoperative on July
1, 2011, and, as of January 1, 2012, is repealed, unless
a later enacted statute, which becomes effective on or
before January 1, 2012, deletes or extends the dates on
which it becomes operative and is repealed. Subjects
the VMB to the process of sunset review prior to its
repeal.
4. Prohibits the practice of veterinary medicine without a
license and specifies that a person practices veterinary
medicine when he or she, among other things, represents
himself or herself as engaged in the practice of
veterinary medicine or administers a treatment of
whatever nature for the cure or relief of a bodily
injury or disease of an animal.
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Existing law, the Penal Code: Requires the attending or
on-call veterinarian at a rodeo event to submit a brief
written listing of any animal injury requiring veterinary
treatment to the VMB within 48 hours of the conclusion of
the event.
Existing law, the Government Code: Exempts certain healing
arts practitioners from liability for specified medical
services rendered during a state of war, state of
emergency, or local emergency.
This bill:
1.Adds one registered veterinary technician (RVT) to the
board, to be appointed by the Governor, and specifies
that the RVT shall be a bona fide resident of this state
for a period of at least five years immediately
preceding his or her appointment and shall have been
registered with the VMB and actually engaged in the
practice of RVT during that period.
2.Extends the inoperative date and repeal date of the VMB
to January 1, 2014.
3.Provides that the current multidisciplinary committee of
the VMB shall be re-named the "Veterinary Medicine
Multidisciplinary Advisory Committee" (VMMA Committee)
and that in addition to its current responsibilities it
shall also assist the board in its examination,
licensure, and registration programs.
4.Prescribes the VMMA Committee composition and provides
that it shall consist of seven members, four licensed
veterinarians, two registered veterinary technicians,
and one public member, and requires members to serve for
three-year terms, as specified. Also authorizes the VMB
to remove a member of the VMMA Committee for continued
neglect of duty, incompetence, or unprofessional
conduct.
5 Provides that the VMMA Committee shall represent a
sufficient cross section of the interests in veterinary
medicine in order to address the issues before it, as
determined by the VMB, including veterinarians, RVTs,
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and members of the public.
6.Removes the inoperative date and repeal date of the VMMA
Committee, thereby making the committee operative
indefinitely.
7.Makes the RVT Committee inoperative as of July 1
following the initial appointment of a RVT to the VMB.
8.Provides that a person also practices veterinary
medicine when he or she performs physical rehabilitation
or musculoskeletal manipulation upon an animal, unless
otherwise authorized by regulation or the VMB.
9.Adds the reporting requirement under the Penal Code to
the VMP Act and would specify that this requirement
applies regardless of whether the attending or on-call
veterinarian renders the treatment to the animal, also
requires that a veterinarian who subsequently renders
treatment to an animal known to be injured at a rodeo
event to report to the VMB within seven days, and
requires the report to consist of specified information
and for the VMB to post a form on its website for
purposes of this requirement.
10.Prohibits a person from using the title "registered
veterinary technician" or "veterinary technician," or
any other words, letters, or symbols, including, but not
limited to, the abbreviation "R.V.T.," with the intent
to represent that the person is authorized to act as a
registered veterinary technician, unless he or she has
met the specified requirements.
11.Requires an "unregistered assistant" to be trained in
the area of radiation safety and techniques in order to
operate radiographic equipment under the direct
supervision of a RVT or licensed veterinarian and would
require the responsible managing licensee of the
veterinary premises to maintain records of that
training. If records do not exist of this training then
the "unregistered assistant" shall not operate
radiographic equipment. The training records shall be
made available to the VMB upon request and at the time
of any inspection of the veterinary premises.
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12.Provides that the requirements for examination and
registration as a RVT shall not apply to students in the
clinical portion of their final year of study in a
board-approved California veterinary technology program
who perform the job tasks for RVTs as part of their
educational experience, including students both on and
off campus acting under the supervision of a licensed
veterinarian "in good standing," as defined. The VMB
shall adopt regulations defining the parameters of
supervision for these students.
13.Makes other conforming technical and clarifying changes
to the VMP Act.
14.(Government Code) Similar to other health care
practitioners, exempts veterinarians and RVTs for
services rendered to animals during a state of war,
state of emergency, or local emergency if provided at
the express or implied request of any responsible state
or local official or agency.
Related Legislation
AB 107 (Galgiani), Chapter 80, Statutes of 2009, clarified
the appointment of members to the VMB by the Governor;
required the VMB to offer both a written and practical
examination at least twice a year until January 1, 2011,
and after that date, to offer a national examination and a
state specific examination on animal health care tasks;
made other changes related to reciprocity and temporary
licensing requirements for out-of-state veterinarians;
clarified the enforcement actions that may be taken against
a registered veterinarian technician; and, made other
technical and conforming changes to the VMP Act.
SB 1584 (Padilla), Chapter 529, Statutes of 2008, increased
the fees charged for licensing of veterinarians and
registration of RVTs; required the VMB to appoint a
voluntary, advisory, multidisciplinary committee to assist,
advise, and make recommendations for the implementation of
rules and regulations necessary to ensure proper
administration of the VMP Act; specified changes in the
membership terms and the composition of the RVT Committee;
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amended the RVT exam eligibility requirements; required the
VMB to prioritize its investigative and prosecutorial
resources and establish a priority list for investigative
and prosecutorial resources; required the VMB to report
annually and make publicly available the number of
disciplinary actions it takes, as specified; made changes
to the inspection and enforcement programs of the VMB.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: Yes
SUPPORT : (Verified 8/4/10)
California Veterinary Medical Association (co-source)
California Veterinary Medical Board (co-source)
Action for Animals
California Registered Veterinary Technicians Association
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : The California Veterinary Medical
Board (VMB) and the California Veterinary Medical
Association (CVMA) are co-sponsors of this measure.
According to the Sponsors, this measure is the result of
more than six months of collaboration between the VMB, the
CVMA and the California Registered Veterinary Technician
Association (CaRVTA). All three organizations identified
segments within the VMP Act that needed clarification or
revision.
The sponsors indicate that the measure, among other things,
provides a temporary, limited sunset date for the VMB, and
increases the membership on the board by one position to
allow a RVT to have a voice on the board. The bill also
makes several important changes to a very effective
Multidiscipline Advisory Committee that was established in
2008, including adding an additional RVT to that committee,
reducing the membership of the committee by two members,
making the committee permanent, and collapsing another
advisory committee for cost savings and efficiency.
JJA:cm 8/4/10 Senate Floor Analyses
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SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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