Amended in Assembly March 19, 2013

California Legislature—2013–14 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 355

Introduced by Assembly Member Cooley

February 13, 2013

An act relating to emergency medical services.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 355, as amended, Cooley. Emergency medical services: mobile field hospitals.

Existing law creates the Office of Emergency Services and requires it to perform a variety of duties with respect to specified emergency preparedness, mitigation, and response activities in the state, including emergency medical services.

This bill would begin delete express the intent of the Legislature to restore the Mobile Field Hospital program. The bill would additionally express the intent of the Legislature to make an appropriation of end delete begin insert appropriate end insert $1,700,000 begin insert from the General Fund to the Office of Emergency Services end insert to continue the begin insert Mobile Field Hospital end insert program. begin insert The bill would also make legislative findings and declarations. end insert

Vote:  begin delete majority end delete begin insert ²⁄₃ end insert . Appropriation:  begin delete no end delete begin insert yes end insert . Fiscal committee:  begin delete no end delete begin insert yes end insert . State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

begin insert

begin insert SECTION 1. end insert   

end insert

begin insert (a) end insert begin insert   end insert begin insert The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following: end insert

begin insert

(1) California has a history of devastating natural disasters,
including, but not limited to, earthquakes and floods.

end insert begin insert

(2) The Uniform California Earthquake Rupture Forecast model
predicts that California will experience a magnitude 6.7 or larger
earthquake in the next 30 years.

end insert begin insert

(3) Mobile field hospitals have been deployed around the world
in response to natural disasters and public health emergencies.

end insert begin insert

(4) California invested in three 200 bed mobile field hospitals
as part of the state’s disaster preparedness plan to protect citizens
and provide critical medical services in a time of need. However,
due to a lack of programmatic funding, the state will be forced to
sell the mobile field hospitals at a fraction of the program’s initial
cost.

end insert

begin insert

begin insert SEC. 2. end insert   

end insert

begin insert The sum of one million seven hundred thousand dollars
($1,700,000) is hereby appropriated from the General Fund to the
Office of Emergency Services for purposes of continuing the Mobile
Field Hospital program. end insert

begin delete

SECTION 1.  

It is the intent of the Legislature to restore the
Mobile Field Hospital program under the Office of Emergency
Services. Further, it is the intent of the Legislature to make an
appropriation of one million seven hundred thousand dollars
($1,700,000) to continue the program.

end delete