Senate Bill No. 191

Introduced by Senator Padilla

February 7, 2013

An act to amend Section 76000.5 of the Government Code, and to amend Section 1797.98a of the Health and Safety Code, relating to emergency medical services.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

SB 191, as introduced, Padilla. Emergency medical services.

Existing law establishes the Maddy Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Fund, and authorizes each county to establish an emergency medical services fund for reimbursement of costs related to emergency medical services. Existing law, until January 1, 2014, authorizes county boards of supervisors to elect to levy an additional penalty, for deposit into the EMS Fund, in the amount of $2 for every $10 upon fines, penalties, and forfeitures collected for criminal offenses. Existing law, until January 1, 2014, requires 15% of the funds collected pursuant to that provision be used to provide funding for pediatric trauma centers.

This bill would extend the operative date of these provisions indefinitely. The bill would also make a technical, nonsubstantive change to these provisions.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no. State-mandated local program: no.

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

SECTION 1.  

Section 76000.5 of the Government Code is
amended to read:

76000.5.  

(a) (1) Except as otherwise provided in this section,
for purposes of supporting emergency medical services pursuant
to Chapter 2.5 (commencing with Section 1797.98a) of Division
2.5 of the Health and Safety Code, in addition to the penalties set
forth in Section 76000, the county board of supervisors may elect
to levy an additional penalty in the amount of two dollars ($2) for
every ten dollars ($10), or part of ten dollars ($10), upon every
fine, penalty, or forfeiture imposed and collected by the courts for
all criminal offenses, including violations of Division 9
(commencing with Section 23000) of the Business and Professions
Code relating to the control of alcoholic beverages, and all offenses
involving a violation of the Vehicle Code or a local ordinance
adopted pursuant to the Vehicle Code. This penalty shall be
collected together with and in the same manner as the amounts
established by Section 1464 of the Penal Code.

(2) This additional penalty does not apply to the following:

(A) A restitution fine.

(B) A penalty authorized by Section 1464 of the Penal Code or
this chapter.

(C) A parking offense subject to Article 3 (commencing with
Section 40200) of Chapter 1 of Division 17 of the Vehicle Code.

(D) The state surcharge authorized by Section 1465.7 of the
Penal Code.

(b) Funds shall be collected pursuant to subdivision (a) only if
the county board of supervisors provides that the increased
penalties do not offset or reduce the funding of other programs
from other sources, but that these additional revenues result in
increased funding to those programs.

(c) Moneys collected pursuant to subdivision (a) shall be taken
from fines and forfeitures deposited with the county treasurer prior
to any division pursuant to Section 1463 of the Penal Code.

(d) Funds collected pursuant to this section shall be deposited
into the Maddy Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Fund
established pursuant to Section 1797.98a of the Health and Safety
Code.

begin delete

(e) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2014,
and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that
is enacted before January 1, 2014, deletes or extends that date.

end delete

SEC. 2.  

Section 1797.98a of the Health and Safety Code is
amended to read:

1797.98a.  

(a) The fund provided for in this chapter shall be
known as the Maddy Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Fund.

(b) (1) Each county may establish an emergency medical
services fund, upon the adoption of a resolution by the board of
supervisors. The moneys in the fund shall be available for the
reimbursements required by this chapter. The fund shall be
administered by each county, except that a county electing to have
the state administer its medically indigent services program may
also elect to have its emergency medical services fund administered
by the state.

(2) Costs of administering the fund shall be reimbursed by the
fund in an amount that does not exceed the actual administrative
costs or 10 percent of the amount of the fund, whichever amount
is lower.

(3) All interest earned on moneys in the fund shall be deposited
in the fund for disbursement as specified in this section.

(4) Each administering agency may maintain a reserve of up to
15 percent of the amount in the portions of the fund reimbursable
to physicians and surgeons, pursuant to subparagraph (A) of, and
to hospitals, pursuant to subparagraph (B) of, paragraph (5). Each
administering agency may maintain a reserve of any amount in
the portion of the fund that is distributed for other emergency
medical services purposes as determined by each county, pursuant
to subparagraph (C) of paragraph (5).

(5) The amount in the fund, reduced by the amount for
administration and the reserve, shall be utilized to reimburse
physicians and surgeons and hospitals for patients who do not
make payment for emergency medical services and for other
emergency medical services purposes as determined by each county
according to the following schedule:

(A) Fifty-eight percent of the balance of the fund shall be
distributed to physicians and surgeons for emergency services
provided by all physicians and surgeons, except those physicians
and surgeons employed by county hospitals, in general acute care
hospitals that provide basic, comprehensive, or standby emergency
services pursuant to paragraph (3) or (5) of subdivision (f) of
Section 1797.98e up to the time the patient is stabilized.

(B) Twenty-five percent of the fund shall be distributed only to
hospitals providing disproportionate trauma and emergency medical
care services.

(C) Seventeen percent of the fund shall be distributed for other
emergency medical services purposes as determined by each
county, including, but not limited to, the funding of regional poison
control centers. Funding may be used for purchasing equipment
and for capital projects only to the extent that these expenditures
support the provision of emergency services and are consistent
with the intent of this chapter.

(c) The source of the moneys in the fund shall be the penalty
assessment made for this purpose, as provided in Section 76000
of the Government Code.

(d) Any physician and surgeon may be reimbursed for up to 50
percent of the amount claimed pursuant to subdivision (a) of
Section 1797.98c for the initial cycle of reimbursements made by
the administering agency in a given year, pursuant to Section
1797.98e. All funds remaining at the end of the fiscal year in excess
of any reserve held and rolled over to the next year pursuant to
paragraph (4) of subdivision (b) shall be distributed proportionally,
based on the dollar amount of claims submitted and paid to all
physicians and surgeons who submitted qualifying claims during
that year.

(e) Of the money deposited into the fund pursuant to Section
76000.5 of the Government Code, 15 percent shall be utilized to
provide funding for all pediatric trauma centers throughout the
county, both publicly and privately owned and operated. The
expenditure of money shall be limited to reimbursement to
physicians and surgeons, and to hospitals for patients who do not
make payment for emergency care services in hospitals up to the
point of stabilization, or to hospitals for expanding the services
provided to pediatric trauma patients at trauma centers and other
hospitals providing care to pediatric trauma patients, or at pediatric
trauma centers, including the purchase of equipment. Local
emergency medical services (EMS) agencies may conduct a needs
assessment of pediatric trauma services in the county to allocate
these expenditures. Counties that do not maintain a pediatric trauma
center shall utilize the money deposited into the fund pursuant to
Section 76000.5 of the Government Code to improve access to,
and coordination of, pediatric trauma and emergency services in
the county, with preference for funding given to hospitals that
specialize in services to children, and physicians and surgeons
who provide emergency care for children. Funds spent for the
purposes of this section, shall be known as Richie’s Fund. begin delete This
subdivision shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2014, and
shall have no force or effect on or after that date, unless a later
enacted statute, that is chaptered before January 1, 2014, deletes
or extends that date. end delete

(f) Costs of administering money deposited into the fund
pursuant to Section 76000.5 of the Government Code shall be
reimbursed from the money collected in an amount that does not
exceed the actual administrative costs or 10 percent of the money
collected, whichever amount is lower. begin delete This subdivision shall remain
in effect only until January 1, 2014, and shall have no force or
effect on or after that date, unless a later enacted statute, that is
chaptered before January 1, 2014, deletes or extends that date. end delete