BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 1578
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ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB
1578 (Rodriguez and Kim)
As Amended April 19, 2016
2/3 vote. Urgency
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|Committee |Votes|Ayes |Noes |
| | | | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
|----------------+-----+----------------------+--------------------|
|Health |18-0 |Wood, Maienschein, | |
| | |Bonilla, Burke, | |
| | |Campos, Chiu, | |
| | |Dababneh, Roger | |
| | |Hernández, Lackey, | |
| | |Nazarian, Olsen, | |
| | |Patterson, | |
| | |Ridley-Thomas, | |
| | |Rodriguez, Santiago, | |
| | |Steinorth, Thurmond, | |
| | |Waldron | |
| | | | |
|----------------+-----+----------------------+--------------------|
|Appropriations |20-0 |Gonzalez, Bigelow, | |
| | |Bloom, Bonilla, | |
| | |Bonta, Calderon, | |
| | |Chang, Daly, Eggman, | |
| | |Gallagher, Eduardo | |
| | |Garcia, Roger | |
| | |Hernández, Holden, | |
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| | |Jones, Obernolte, | |
| | |Quirk, Santiago, | |
| | |Wagner, Weber, Wood | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
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SUMMARY: Appropriates $2 million from the General Fund (GF) to
the Emergency Medical Services Authority (EMSA) to provide
maintenance and upkeep of mobile field hospitals (MFHs) within
the Mobile Field Hospital Program.
FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee:
1)$2 million GF one-time to EMSA. EMSA indicates $900,000 would
be sufficient to bring all three MFHs to immediate deployable
status and $1.1 million would provide for one year of ongoing
maintenance and deployment capability for two Sacramento-based
MFHs.
2)Ongoing cost pressure of $2 million GF annually to maintain
funding for MFHs brought into deployment status. The
maintenance for each of the three MFHs is estimated to cost
$600,000, with an additional cost of $175,000 to $250,000 to
store a hospital in the Los Angeles area.
COMMENTS: According to the author, California currently owns
three mobile field hospital units with combined bed capacities
in excess of 600 beds. Because of neglect and past fiscal
budgetary crises, the state by not maintaining these assets, has
in effect gambled that it would not experience a major disaster.
The author states that the time to prepare for disaster and
emergency preparedness is now.
According to EMSA, in 2007, the state purchased three MFHs with
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the intent to replace or augment acute hospital care capacity
during catastrophic emergencies. AB 1811 (Laird), Chapter 48,
Statutes of 2006, which amended the Budget Act of 2006,
authorized the purchase of the three MFHs at an initial GF cost
of $18.3 million. Additionally, $1.7 million GF was authorized
in fiscal year (FY) 2006-07 to provide for ongoing costs
associated with program staff, storage, maintenance and
readiness. These ongoing funds were eliminated in FY 2011-12.
The MFHs have been deployed three times for exercises, but never
for a response to a real event.
Each MFH can be deployed as a 200-bed acute care facility or in
smaller modules of 50, 100, or 150 beds. The shelf life for the
MFHs' infrastructure items is a minimum of twenty years; the
current age is eight years. Currently, all three MFHs are
stored in the Sacramento area in delayed deployment status. If
needed in the event of a disaster, deployment would be delayed a
minimum of 30 days for additional maintenance and
recertification.
The Rural County Representatives of California argue that
disaster preparedness is vital to the State's ability to respond
to all types of disasters. Rural communities face unique
challenges in dealing with disaster preparedness, response and
recovery. Disasters resulting in significant medical
emergencies would overwhelm rural hospitals and transporting
patients to other facilities would overtax available medical
transportation delaying timely care. The California Ambulance
Association supports this bill because MFHs are needed in case
California faces a catastrophic event. The American Red Cross
argues that having fully equipped MFHs guarantees readiness in
case of any emergency situation.
There is no known opposition to this bill.
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Analysis Prepared by:
John Gilman / HEALTH / (916) 319-2097 FN:
0003203