BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 681
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Date of Hearing: April 2, 2013
Chief Counsel: Gregory Pagan
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC SAFETY
Tom Ammiano, Chair
AB 681 (Melendez) - As Introduced: February 21, 2013
As Proposed to be Amended in Committee
SUMMARY : Increases from $3 to $5 the fee charged for each
inmate-initiated medical visit of an inmate confined in a county
or city jail.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Provides that a sheriff, director of corrections, or chief of
police is authorized to charge a fee in the amount of $3 for
each inmate initiated medical visit of an inmate confined in a
county or city jail. [Penal Code Section 4011.2(a).]
2)States that the fee shall be charged to the inmate's personal
account at the facility. If the inmate has no money in his or
her personal account, there shall be no charge for the medical
visit. [Penal Code Section 4011.2(b).]
3)Provides that an inmate shall not be denied medical care
because of a lack of funds in his or her personal account.
[Penal Code Section 4011.2 (c).]
4)Provides that the medical provider may waive the fee for any
inmate-initiated treatment and shall waive the fee for any
life-threatening or emergency situation, defined as those
health services required for alleviation of severe pain or for
immediate diagnosis and treatment of unforeseen medical
conditions that if not immediately treated could lead to
disability or death. [Penal Code Section 4011.2(d).]
5)States that follow-up medical visits, at the direction of the
medical staff, shall not be charged to the inmate. [Penal
Code Section 4011.2(e).]
6)Provides that the Director of the Department of Corrections is
authorized to charge a fee in the amount of $5 for each inmate
AB 681
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initiated medical visit of an inmate confined in the state
prison. [Penal Code Section 5007.5(a).]
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS :
1)Authors Statement : According to the author, "A sheriff,
director of corrections, or chief of police is authorized to
charge a fee in the amount of $3 for each inmate co-pay in a
county or city jail. This amount was set in 1994 and has not
been increased since. Since the cost of a medical visit for
a county inmate is so low it causes some inmates to abuse the
system, for example, some common reasons to seek a non-medical
visit are drug seeking, wanting to see a specific person,
wanting to get out of his/her cell, and now with overcrowding
some inmates just want to have some privacy. AB 681 will
increase the co-pay which will better align the amount charged
to them with the cost of care while deterring unnecessary and
frivolous use of medical services."
2)California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR)
Medical Co-pay : Under existing law [Penal Code Section
5007.5(a)], the CDCR Director is authorized to charge a fee in
the amount of $5 for each inmate initiated medical visit of an
inmate confined in the state prison. This bill aligns the fee
charged for an inmate initiated medical visit in the county
jail with the $5 fee charged to an inmate confined in the
state prison.
3)Argument in Support : The California State Sheriffs'
Association writes, "Current law authorizes a sheriff to
charge a fee in the amount of three dollars ($3) for each
inmate-initiated medical visit of an inmate confined in a
county or city jail. The fee is charged to the inmate's
personal account at the facility and is based strictly on the
ability to pay. If the inmate has no money in his or her
personal account, there is no charge for the medical visit nor
is an inmate denied medical care because of a lack of funds in
his or her personal account. The $3 fee that is currently
charged for inmate-initiated medical visits has not been
increased since 1994. Costs of providing services have
subsequently increased since this fee was enacted, yet the fee
has not been adjusted to keep in line with those costs."
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4)Argument in Opposition : The Friends Committee on Legislation
of California argues, "Though $10 co-pays may seem
insignificant for most of us, county prisoners lack the means
to earn money during their incarceration. We are concerned
that raising the feel will discourage legitimate medical
visits and could result in serious health consequences for
county prisoners and correctional staff. Moreover, given the
higher prevalence of communicable diseases in jails, as
documented by the Centers for Disease Control and the National
Commission on Correctional Health Care, the general public
could be placed at risk.
"Given the potential risks associated with increasing the cost
of health care, we believe this bill should be carefully
vetted with input from correctional and public health
professionals. Any fiscal savings resulting from increased
co-pays should be weighed against the potential health
consequences that could result in the need for more intensive
and widespread medical care."
5)Prior Legislation :
a) AB 2296 (Valadao), of the 2011-12 Legislative Session,
would have increased from $3 to $5 the fee charged for each
inmate-initiated medical visit by an inmate confined in a
county or city jail. AB 2296 failed passage in the Senate
Public Safety Committee.
b) AB 1487 (Hill), of the 2009-10 Legislative Session,
would have increased from $3 to $6 the fee charged for each
inmate-initiated medical visit by an inmate confined in a
county or city jail, and required that the $3 fee increase
be deposited in the county inmate welfare fund. AB 1487
was amended in the Senate into an unrelated subject area.
c) AB 2232 (Nielsen), of the 2009-10 Legislative Session,
would have required that a $5 fee be charged by the
California Department of Corrections for each
inmate-initiated medical visit of an inmate confined in the
state prison, extended the fee to dental visits, and
required that inmates be charged for medically directed
follow up visits. AB 2232 was never heard by this
Committee.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
AB 681
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Support
California State Sheriffs' Association
Peace Officers Research Association
Rural County Representatives of California
San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department
Opposition
American Civil Liberties Union
California Attorneys for Criminal Justice
California Public Defenders Association
Friends Committee on Legislation of California
Legal Services for Prisoners with Children
Analysis Prepared by : Gregory Pagan / PUB. S. / (916)
319-3744