BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 1864
Page 1
CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
AB
1864 (Cooley)
As Amended August 15, 2016
Majority vote
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|ASSEMBLY: |78-0 |(May 12, 2016) |SENATE: |38-0 |(August 18, |
| | | | | |2016) |
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Original Committee Reference: PUB. S.
SUMMARY: 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.
The Senate amendments double join this bill with SB 1189 (Pan)
of the current legislative session to avoid chaptering issues.
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. Affords the coroner with the
AB 1864
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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.
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, 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.
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.
4)Requires that an autopsy conducted where it is suspected that
the cause of death is sudden infant death syndrome 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.
5)Requires that all coroners, throughout the state, follow the
established protocol when conducting autopsies where the
suspected cause of death is sudden infant death syndrome, and
requires a coroner to state on the certificate of death that
sudden infant death syndrome was the cause of death when the
findings are consistent with the definition of sudden infant
death syndrome.
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.
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AS PASSED BY THE ASSEMBLY, this bill:
1)Defined "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)Required 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)Stated that a coroner shall not be liable for damages in a
civil action for any act or omission in compliance with the
above provision.
FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Senate Appropriations
Committee, pursuant to Senate Rule 28.8 negligible state costs.
COMMENTS: According to the author, "Though emergency personnel
and law enforcement are required to be provided training to
handle cases involving Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, they do not
receive training on the handling of cases where the suspected
cause of death is Sudden Unexpected Death in Childhood. As a
result, parents whose children die under these circumstances are
often left with little or no information on how to process the
death of their children or how to address further
investigation."
Please see the policy committee analysis for a full discussion
of this bill.
Analysis Prepared by:
AB 1864
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Gregory Pagan / PUB. S. / (916) 319-3744 FN:
0004315