BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 1864|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 1864
Author: Cooley (D), et al.
Amended: 8/15/16 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE: 7-0, 6/14/16
AYES: Hancock, Anderson, Glazer, Leno, Liu, Monning, Stone
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: Senate Rule 28.8
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 78-0, 5/12/16 (Consent) - See last page for
vote
SUBJECT: Inquests: sudden unexplained death in childhood
SOURCE: Sudden Unexplained Death in Childhood Foundation
DIGEST: This bill defines "sudden unexplained death in
childhood" (SUDC), and requires a coroner to notify the parents
or responsible adult of a child that comes within the definition
of the importance of taking tissue samples, as specified.
Senate Floor Amendments of 8/15/16 make chaptering amendments.
Senate Floor Amendments of 8/4/16 delete a requirement that had
to be completed by 1990, and make chaptering amendments.
AB 1864
Page 2
ANALYSIS:
Existing law:
1)Requires a coroner to investigate the circumstances, manner,
and cause of specified types of deaths, including violent,
sudden, or unusual deaths; unattended deaths; and deaths where
the deceased has not been attended to by a physician within 20
days before the death occurred. Existing law affords the
coroner with the discretion to determine the extent of the
inquiry into a death occurring under natural circumstances,
and allows the coroner to authorize a physician to sign the
certificate of death if the physician has sufficient knowledge
to reasonably state the cause of a death occurring under
natural circumstances. (Government Code § 27491.)
2)Provides that a coroner shall within 24 hours, or as soon as
feasible thereafter, where the suspected cause of death is
sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), take possession of the
body, and make or cause to be made a postmortem examination or
autopsy thereon, and the detailed medical findings resulting
from an examination of the body or autopsy by an examining
physician must either be reduced to writing, or permanently
preserved, as specified. (Government Code § 27491.4(a).)
3)Defines "sudden infant death syndrome" to mean the sudden
death of an infant that is unexpected by the history of the
infant and where a thorough postmortem fails to demonstrate an
adequate cause of death. (Government Code § 27491.49(a).)
4)Requires that an autopsy conducted where it is suspected that
the cause of death is SIDS be conducted pursuant to a
standardized protocol developed by the State Department of
Public Health. The protocol shall be developed and approved
by July 1, 1990. (Government Code § 27491.41(d.).)
5)Requires that all coroners, throughout the state, follow the
established protocol when conducting autopsies where the
suspected cause of death is SIDS, and requires a coroner to
state on the certificate of death that SIDS was the cause of
death when the findings are consistent with the definition of
SIDS. (Government Code § 27491.41(e).)
AB 1864
Page 3
6)Requires a coroner to perform or arrange for an autopsy on a
decedent upon a written request of the surviving spouse, or in
certain circumstances, a child, parent, or other legal
next-of-kin; and requires the cost of the autopsy to be borne
by the person requesting the autopsy. (Government Code §
27520.)
This bill:
1)Defines "sudden unexplained death in childhood" as the sudden
death of a child one year of age or older but under 18 years
of age that is unexplained by the history of the child and
where a thorough post mortem exam fails to demonstrate
adequate cause for the death.
2)Requires the coroner to notify the parents or responsible
adult of a child that comes within the SUDC definition of the
importance of taking tissue samples.
3)States that a coroner shall not be liable for damages in a
civil action for any act or omission in compliance with the
above provision.
Background
According to the Sudden Unexplained Death in Childhood Program's
(SUDCP) Web site, SUDC is a rare condition that occurs in
children over the age of 12 months. According to the SUDCP, SUDC
is a diagnosis of exclusion that is given when all known and
possible causes of death have been ruled out. The SUDCP states
that the incidence of SUCD is approximately 1.3 deaths per
100,000 children, compared to 57 deaths per 100,000 live births
for SIDS in 2002. (http://sudc. org/About/FAQs.) The Web site
additionally, states, with regard to the collection of tissue:
If available to you, SUDC encourages the banking of your
child's DNA to provide you with options to pursue more
information about your child's death. As clinical testing
advances and research options improve, you may want to
access these opportunities. Securing a genetic specimen
(DNA) from your child may provide:
§ the opportunity for genetic testing to uncover specific
AB 1864
Page 4
cause of death and appropriate testing of family
§ the opportunity for genetic testing to provide negative
results - which may assist in decreasing some anxiety
§ the opportunity for storing a genetic specimen -banking
DNA
§ Instill hope for cases that currently defy
understanding
§ Allow for participation in present or future
research
§ Allow families to benefit from potential benefit of
future discoveries
(http://sudc.org/Research/Securing-and-Banking-DNA-after-SUD
C.)
According to the author, "reasons to take samples in SUDC cases
include observing tissues for abnormalities or damage, and
banking DNA for further investigation." To this end, this bill
requires the coroner to notify the parents of the importance of
taking tissue samples.
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal
Com.:YesLocal: Yes
SUPPORT: (Verified8/11/16)
Sudden Unexplained Death in Childhood Foundation (source)
Several individuals
AB 1864
Page 5
OPPOSITION: (Verified8/11/16)
California State Coroners' Association
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 78-0, 5/12/16
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Travis Allen, Arambula, Atkins, Baker,
Bigelow, Bloom, Bonilla, Bonta, Brough, Brown, Calderon,
Campos, Chang, Chau, Chávez, Chiu, Chu, Cooley, Cooper,
Dababneh, Dahle, Daly, Dodd, Eggman, Frazier, Beth Gaines,
Gallagher, Cristina Garcia, Eduardo Garcia, Gatto, Gipson,
Gomez, Gonzalez, Gordon, Gray, Grove, Hadley, Harper, Roger
Hernández, Holden, Irwin, Jones, Kim, Lackey, Levine, Linder,
Lopez, Low, Maienschein, Mathis, Mayes, McCarty, Medina,
Melendez, Mullin, Nazarian, Obernolte, O'Donnell, Olsen,
Patterson, Quirk, Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez, Salas, Santiago,
Steinorth, Mark Stone, Thurmond, Ting, Wagner, Waldron, Weber,
Wilk, Williams, Wood, Rendon
NO VOTE RECORDED: Burke, Jones-Sawyer
Prepared by:Jessica Devencenzi / PUB. S. /
8/16/16 17:57:11
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