BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 1947
Page 1
Date of Hearing: April 6, 2016
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Lorena Gonzalez, Chair
AB
1947 (Chiu) - As Introduced February 12, 2016
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|Policy |Health |Vote:|15 - 2 |
|Committee: | | | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
|-------------+-------------------------------+-----+-------------|
| | | | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
|-------------+-------------------------------+-----+-------------|
| | | | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: NoReimbursable: No
SUMMARY:
This bill requires the California Department of Public Health
(CDPH) to publish on their web site current checklists and
instructions related to the "affiliate clinic" licensure
process.
AB 1947
Page 2
FISCAL EFFECT:
Negligible state fiscal effect. The Licensing and Certification
Division of CDPH indicates they are in the process of updating
the information.
COMMENTS:
1)Purpose. This bill, sponsored by Planned Parenthood Affiliates
of California, is intended to ensure clinics can access
current information on the affiliate clinic license process,
in order to reduce administrative burden on clinics applying
for and maintaining such licenses. Specifically, they
indicate currently available information is erroneous and
out-of-date.
2)Background. Affiliate clinics are separate clinic sites
operated under a single license. Clinics in good standing may
establish an additional clinic site or a mobile health care
unit as an affiliate clinic in order to streamline licensure
of the additional clinic. Existing law stipulates the
affiliate clinic application should be a simple form and
specifies the additional minimal information that is required.
Chapter 704, Statutes of 2015 (AB 1177, Gomez), prohibits a
primary care clinic, notwithstanding current regulations or
any other law, from being required to enter into a written
transfer agreement with a nearby hospital as a condition of
licensure, and requires DPH to repeal the regulation requiring
primary care clinics to enter into transfer agreements, no
later than July 1, 2016. In spite of the new law prohibiting
transfer agreements as a requirement of licensure
notwithstanding any other law or regulation, CDPH's website
currently states they are required for affiliate clinic
AB 1947
Page 3
licensure.
3)Clarifying amendment suggested. Language in the code section
being amended by this bill specifies "a copy of the transfer
agreement between the new affiliate clinic and a local
hospital" is required for an affiliate clinic license, in
spite of language passed last year barring such a requirement,
as noted above. Since affiliate clinics are licensed under a
primary care clinic, for which transfer agreements are
expressly not required notwithstanding any other law, the
author may wish to consider clarifying HSC 1218.1 to remove
1218.1(b)(11) in order to align it with existing law.
Analysis Prepared by:Lisa Murawski / APPR. / (916)
319-2081