BILL ANALYSIS ------------------------------------------------------------ |SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 769| |Office of Senate Floor Analyses | | |1020 N Street, Suite 524 | | |(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | | |327-4478 | | ------------------------------------------------------------ THIRD READING Bill No: SB 769 Author: Alquist (D) Amended: 8/16/10 Vote: 27 - Urgency PRIOR VOTES NOT RELEVANT ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 76-0, 8/19/10 - See last page for vote SUBJECT : Federal funding: supplemental appropriations: pandemic influenza SOURCE : Health Office Association of California DIGEST : This bill provides that federal funding received pursuant to the federal Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2009 for pandemic flu preparedness and response is subject to appropriation by the Legislature for allocation by the Department of Public Health (DPH) pursuant to the 2008-09 federally approved collaborative state-local plan; authorizes DPH to establish a minimum allocation of $100,000 to a local health jurisdiction (LHJ), as specified; and, requires DPH to expand its electronic communications capacity to accommodate every hospital and primary care clinic during a public health emergency. Assembly Amendments delete the original version of the bill, dealing with economic stimulus and local health administration, and the bill now deals with federal funding CONTINUED SB 769 Page 2 and pandemic influenza. ANALYSIS : Existing law : 1. Establishes procedures and requirements to govern the allocation to, and expenditure by, local health jurisdictions of federal funding received for the prevention of, and response to, bioterrorist attacks and other public health emergencies. 2. Provides that these procedures apply only when local health jurisdictions are designated by a federal or state agency to manage the funds for public health preparedness and response to bioterrorist attacks and other public health emergencies, pursuant to a specified federally approved plan. 3. Repeals these provisions as of January 1, 2011, as specified. This bill: 1. Provides that federal funding received pursuant to the federal Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2009 for pandemic flu preparedness and response is subject to appropriation by the Legislature for allocation by DPH pursuant to the 2008-09 federally approved collaborative state-local plans. 2. Authorizes DPH to establish a minimum allocation of $100,000 to a local health jurisdiction, as specified. 3. Requires DPH to expand its electronic communications capacity to accommodate every hospital and primary care clinic during a public health emergency. 4. Requires funds received for pandemic flu response, in the case that a local health jurisdiction (LHJ) does not apply for all of its authorized allocation, to be made available by DPH to other LHJs that apply for them. 5. Permits any addition funds not allocated to LHJ to be CONTINUED SB 769 Page 3 used by DPH for pandemic flu response activities. Contains an urgency clause to ensure that the provisions of this bill go into immediate effect upon enactment. Background According to the author's office, this bill is needed to ensure appropriate allocation of federal funding for emergency response and pandemic preparedness. The author's office states that for the past several years, the state has received federal funds to be used for emergency preparedness and response to such events as a pandemic flu outbreak. Under the existing state and local collaborative plan approved by the federal government, 70 percent of the funding is distributed to LHJs, while 30 percent remains with the state. According to the author's office, this bill is needed to add the Supplemental Appropriations Act funds to the previous stream of federal funds and ensure that LHJs receive an adequate share of the funding. The author's office further contends this bill facilitates timely distribution of the funds. According to DPH, novel H1N1 is a new influenza virus which was first detected in people in the United States in April 2009 and which spreads from person-to-person, similar to how regular seasonal influenza viruses spread. The symptoms of novel H1N1 flu virus in people are similar to the symptoms of seasonal flu and include fever, cough, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, body aches, headache, chills, and fatigue. Some people infected with H1N1 also report diarrhea and vomiting. As of August 25, 2009, California had 1,528 hospitalizations, including 128 deaths, due to H1N1 flu (for comparison, DPH reports that each year, approximately 4,500 Californians die from seasonal flu). DPH states that California hospital admissions and emergency room visits due to flu remain higher than normal for this time of year and higher than what is typically seen during the traditional flu season (October to May). Although the H1N1 flu appears to be relatively mild, public health officials remain concerned because flu viruses mutate quickly and can become more virulent, in which case, a more serious outbreak could occur in the fall. On June 24, 2009, President Obama signed the Supplemental CONTINUED SB 769 Page 4 Appropriations Act, which provides $1.85 billion nationally to prepare for and respond to an influenza pandemic, including the development and purchase of vaccine, antivirals, medical supplies, diagnostics, and other surveillance tools, and to assist international efforts and respond to international needs relating to the 2009 H1N1 influenza outbreak. No less than $350 million of the appropriation is intended for upgrading state and local capacity. The supplemental funding is intended to continue to address the current H1N1 influenza outbreak, but also to prepare for the potential of future outbreaks, increased severity of the H1N1 virus, or for the emergence of a new influenza strain. Therefore, the funding may be used for an array of pandemic influenza preparedness and response activities. In July and August, the federal government awarded DPH over $46 million through the Supplemental Appropriations Act and on August 27, 2009, the Schwarzenegger Administration submitted a Section 28 application to the Legislature for authority to use the funds. DPH anticipates additional supplemental funding, but the federal government has not announced the award amounts for the remaining funds. FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes Local: No According to the Assembly Appropriations Committee, a one-time allocation of $28 million in federal funding from the federal Public Health and Social Services Fund related to pandemic flu generally and the H1N1 virus specifically, to be shared 30 percent-70 percent (state/county) among DPH and LHJs. Additional unknown future distributions of federal funding in the 30 percent-70 percent sharing ratio. At this time, an additional $5.8 billion of federal funds nationally has been set aside by Congress to support additional public health activities related to pandemic flu. SUPPORT : (Verified 8/19/10) Health Offices Association of California (source) Santa Clara County, Board of Supervisors CONTINUED SB 769 Page 5 ASSEMBLY FLOOR : AYES: Adams, Ammiano, Anderson, Arambula, Bass, Beall, Bill Berryhill, Tom Berryhill, Blakeslee, Block, Blumenfield, Bradford, Brownley, Buchanan, Caballero, Charles Calderon, Carter, Chesbro, Conway, Cook, Coto, Davis, De La Torre, De Leon, DeVore, Eng, Evans, Feuer, Fletcher, Fong, Fuentes, Fuller, Furutani, Gaines, Galgiani, Garrick, Gatto, Gilmore, Hall, Harkey, Hayashi, Hernandez, Hill, Huber, Huffman, Jeffries, Jones, Lieu, Logue, Bonnie Lowenthal, Ma, Mendoza, Miller, Monning, Nava, Nestande, Niello, Nielsen, V. Manuel Perez, Portantino, Ruskin, Salas, Saldana, Silva, Skinner, Smyth, Solorio, Audra Strickland, Swanson, Torlakson, Torres, Torrico, Tran, Villines, Yamada, John A. Perez NO VOTE RECORDED: Hagman, Knight, Norby, Vacancy CTW:do 8/20/10 Senate Floor Analyses SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE **** END **** CONTINUED