BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 1127
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Date of Hearing: May 4, 2011
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Felipe Fuentes, Chair
AB 1127 (Brownley) - As Amended: April 4, 2011
Policy Committee: Business and
Professions Vote: 8-0
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program:
Yes Reimbursable: No
SUMMARY
This bill makes it unprofessional conduct for a physician and
surgeon who is the subject of an investigation by the Medical
Board of California (MBC) to repeatedly fail, in the absence of
good cause, to attend and participate in an interview scheduled
by the mutual agreement of the physician and surgeon and the
Board.
FISCAL EFFECT
Potential minor cost savings from a reduction in administrative
duties related to the failure of physicians to appear for
interviews at the scheduled time, to the extent that this bill
deters physicians from failing to appear.
COMMENTS
1)Rationale . According to the Medical Board of California, the
sponsor of this bill, the board's investigation of a complaint
against a physician begins with a physician interview. The
repeated failure of some physicians to appear before the board
for the initial interview has resulted in waste of
administrative resources, including the issuance of subpoenas
in some cases, and long case processing times that can exceed
a year. By deeming the failure to appear "unprofessional
conduct," for which the board can take action against a
licensee, this bill aims to deter physicians from failing to
appear before the board.
2)Background . Current law authorizes the Medical Board of
California to enforce disciplinary and criminal provisions
AB 1127
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related to the practice of medicine in order to protect the
public. If a complaint is judged serious enough to warrant an
investigation, an investigator from the board and a Deputy
Attorney General are assigned to the case and the board
launches a formal investigation. The average time to close a
case from the time of the initial complaint has exceeded 250
days in recent years. According to recent reports from the
board, several factors can contribute to long case processing
times, including delays in receiving medical records, delays
in obtaining medical expert opinions, and delays in physician
interviews.
Analysis Prepared by : Lisa Murawski / APPR. / (916) 319-2081