Amended in Senate September 6, 2013

Amended in Assembly April 30, 2013

Amended in Assembly April 18, 2013

California Legislature—2013–14 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 1376

Introduced by Assembly Member Roger Hernández

February 22, 2013

An act to amend begin delete Sections 11018, 11435.30, 11435.35, 11435.40, and 11435.55 of, and to repeal Sections 11435.45 and 11435.50 of, the Government Code, and to amend Sections 4600 and 4620 of the Labor Code, relating to state government. end delete begin insert Section 4600 of the Labor Code, relating to workers’ compensation, and declaring the urgency thereof, to take effect immediately. end insert

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 1376, as amended, Roger Hernández. begin delete Administrative adjudication: language assistance. end delete begin insert Workers’ compensation: medical treatment: interpreters. end insert

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Existing law establishes a workers’ compensation system, administered by the Administrative Director of the Division of Workers’ Compensation, that generally requires employers to secure the payment of workers’ compensation for injuries incurred by their employees that arise out of, or in the course of, employment. Existing law requires an employer to provide all medical services reasonably required to cure or relieve the injured worker from the effects of the injury. Under existing law, if the injured employee cannot effectively communicate with his or her treating physician because he or she cannot proficiently speak or understand the English language, the injured employee is entitled to the services of a qualified interpreter during medical treatment appointments. Existing law requires that, to be a qualified interpreter for these purposes, a person meet any requirements established by rule by the administrative director, as specified.

end insert begin insert

This bill would provide that the requirement that a person meet any requirements established by the administrative director in order to be a qualified interpreter commences on March 1, 2014. This bill would also make technical nonsubstantive changes.

end insert begin insert

This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.

end insert begin delete

Existing law requires certain state agencies to provide language assistance in adjudicative proceedings. Existing law requires the State Personnel Board to establish, maintain, administer, and publish annually for these purposes an updated list of certified administrative hearing interpreters and medical examination interpreters it has determined meet certain minimum standards. Existing law requires the Department of Human Resources to designate the languages for which certification shall be established and to establish and charge fees for applications to take interpreter examinations and for renewal of certifications. Existing law authorizes the Department of Human Resources to remove the name of a person from the list of certified interpreters if any specified conditions occurs. Existing law authorizes a hearing agency to provisionally qualify and use another interpreter if a certified interpreter, as specified, cannot be present at the hearing.

end delete begin delete

This bill would allow the Department of Human Resources, until December 31, 2018, to maintain and publish lists of certified administrative hearing and medical examination interpreters, as specified. This bill would require a reasonable fee to be collected from each interpreter seeking certification, to cover the reasonable regulatory costs of administering the program. The bill would modify the conditions under which an interpreter who is not included on one of the lists of certified interpreters may act as an interpreter.

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

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

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begin insert SECTION 1. end insert   

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begin insert Section 4600 of the end insert begin insert Labor Code end insert begin insert is amended to
read: end insert

4600.  

(a) Medical, surgical, chiropractic, acupuncture, and
hospital treatment, including nursing, medicines, medical and
surgical supplies, crutches, and apparatuses, including orthotic and
prosthetic devices and services, that is reasonably required to cure
or relieve the injured worker from the effects of his or her injury
shall be provided by the employer. In the case of his or her neglect
or refusal reasonably to do so, the employer is liable for the
reasonable expense incurred by or on behalf of the employee in
providing treatment.

(b) As used in this division and notwithstanding any other
begin delete provision of end delete law, medical treatment that is reasonably required to
cure or relieve the injured worker from the effects of his or her
injury means treatment that is based upon the guidelines adopted
by the administrative director pursuant to Section 5307.27.

(c) Unless the employer or the employer’s insurer has
established or contracted with a medical provider network as
provided for in Section 4616, after 30 days from the date the injury
is reported, the employee may be treated by a physician of his or
her own choice or at a facility of his or her own choice within a
reasonable geographic area. A chiropractor shall not be a treating
physician after the employee has received the maximum number
of chiropractic visits allowed by subdivision begin delete (d) end delete begin insert (c) end insert of Section
4604.5.

(d) (1) If an employee has notified his or her employer in
writing prior to the date of injury that he or she has a personal
physician, the employee shall have the right to be treated by that
physician from the date of injury if the employee has health care
coverage for nonoccupational injuries or illnesses on the date of
injury in a plan, policy, or fund as described in subdivisions (b),
(c), and (d) of Section 4616.7.

(2) For purposes of paragraph (1), a personal physician shall
meet all of the following conditions:

(A) Be the employee’s regular physician and surgeon, licensed
pursuant to Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 2000) of Division
2 of the Business and Professions Code.

(B) Be the employee’s primary care physician and has
previously directed the medical treatment of the employee, and
who retains the employee’s medical records, including his or her
medical history. “Personal physician” includes a medical group,
if the medical group is a single corporation or partnership
composed of licensed doctors of medicine or osteopathy, which
operates an integrated multispecialty medical group providing
comprehensive medical services predominantly for
nonoccupational illnesses and injuries.

(C) The physician agrees to be predesignated.

(3) If the employee has health care coverage for nonoccupational
injuries or illnesses on the date of injury in a health care service
plan licensed pursuant to Chapter 2.2 (commencing with Section
1340) of Division 2 of the Health and Safety Code, and the
employer is notified pursuant to paragraph (1), all medical
treatment, utilization review of medical treatment, access to
medical treatment, and other medical treatment issues shall be
governed by Chapter 2.2 (commencing with Section 1340) of
Division 2 of the Health and Safety Code. Disputes regarding the
provision of medical treatment shall be resolved pursuant to Article
5.55 (commencing with Section 1374.30) of Chapter 2.2 of
Division 2 of the Health and Safety Code.

(4) If the employee has health care coverage for nonoccupational
injuries or illnesses on the date of injury in a group health insurance
policy as described in Section 4616.7, all medical treatment,
utilization review of medical treatment, access to medical
treatment, and other medical treatment issues shall be governed
by the applicable provisions of the Insurance Code.

(5) The insurer may require prior authorization of any
nonemergency treatment or diagnostic service and may conduct
reasonably necessary utilization review pursuant to Section 4610.

(6) An employee shall be entitled to all medically appropriate
referrals by the personal physician to other physicians or medical
providers within the nonoccupational health care plan. An
employee shall be entitled to treatment by physicians or other
medical providers outside of the nonoccupational health care plan
pursuant to standards established in Article 5 (commencing with
Section 1367) of Chapter 2.2 of Division 2 of the Health and Safety
Code.

(e) (1) When at the request of the employer, the employer’s
insurer, the administrative director, the appeals board, or a workers’
compensation administrative law judge, the employee submits to
examination by a physician, he or she shall be entitled to receive,
in addition to all other benefits herein provided, all reasonable
expenses of transportation, meals, and lodging incident to reporting
for the examination, together with one day of temporary disability
indemnity for each day of wages lost in submitting to the
examination.

(2) Regardless of the date of injury, “reasonable expenses of
transportation” includes mileage fees from the employee’s home
to the place of the examination and back at the rate of twenty-one
cents ($0.21) a mile or the mileage rate adopted by the Director
of Human Resources pursuant to Section 19820 of the Government
Code, whichever is higher, plus any bridge tolls. The mileage and
tolls shall be paid to the employee at the time he or she is given
notification of the time and place of the examination.

(f) When at the request of the employer, the employer’s insurer,
the administrative director, the appeals board, or a workers’
compensation administrative law judge, an employee submits to
examination by a physician and the employee does not proficiently
speak or understand the English language, he or she shall be
entitled to the services of a qualified interpreter in accordance with
conditions and a fee schedule prescribed by the administrative
director. These services shall be provided by the employer. For
purposes of this section, “qualified interpreter” means a language
interpreter certified, or deemed certified, pursuant to Article 8
(commencing with Section 11435.05) of Chapter 4.5 of Part 1 of
Division 3 of Title 2 of, or Section 68566 of, the Government
Code.

(g) If the injured employee cannot effectively communicate
with his or her treating physician because he or she cannot
proficiently speak or understand the English language, the injured
employee is entitled to the services of a qualified interpreter during
medical treatment appointments. To be a qualified interpreter for
purposes of medical treatment appointments, an interpreter is not
required to meet the requirements of subdivision (f), but
begin insert commencing March 1, 2014, end insert shall meet any requirements
established by rule by the administrative director that are
substantially similar to the requirements set forth in Section
1367.04 of the Health and Safety begin delete Code. end delete begin insert Code, notwithstanding
any other effective date established in regulations. end insert The
administrative director shall adopt a fee schedule for qualified
interpreter fees in accordance with this section. Upon request of
the injured employee, the employer or insurance carrier shall pay
for interpreter services. An employer shall not be required to pay
for the services of an interpreter who is not certified or is
provisionally certified by the person conducting the medical
treatment or examination unless either the employer consents in
advance to the selection of the individual who provides the
interpreting service or the injured worker requires interpreting
service in a language other than the languages designated pursuant
to Section 11435.40 of the Government Code.

(h) Home health care services shall be provided as medical
treatment only if reasonably required to cure or relieve the injured
employee from the effects of his or her injury and prescribed by
a physician and surgeon licensed pursuant to Chapter 5
(commencing with Section 2000) of Division 2 of the Business
and Professions Code, and subject to Section 5307.1 or 5703.8.
The employer shall not be liable for home health care services that
are provided more than 14 days prior to the date of the employer’s
receipt of the physician’s prescription.

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begin insert SEC. 2. end insert   

end insert begin insert

This act is an urgency statute necessary for the
immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety within
the meaning of Article IV of the Constitution and shall go into
immediate effect. The facts constituting the necessity are:

end insert begin insert

In order to avoid jeopardizing injured workers’ access to
medically necessary services, it is necessary that this bill take
effect immediately.

end insert

All matter omitted in this version of the bill appears in the bill as amended in the Assembly April 30, 2013. (JR11)