BILL NUMBER: AB 2308 INTRODUCED
BILL TEXT
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Roger Hernández
FEBRUARY 18, 2016
An act to amend Section 49452.9 of, and to add Chapter 11.2
(commencing with Section 66920) to Part 40 of Division 5 of Title 3
of, the Education Code, relating to health care coverage.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 2308, as introduced, Roger Hernández. Health care coverage:
enrollment assistance.
Existing law establishes the California State University, under
the administration of the Trustees of the California State
University, and the California Community Colleges, under the
administration of the Board of Governors of the California Community
Colleges, as 2 of the 3 segments of public postsecondary education in
this state. Existing law establishes community college districts
throughout the state and authorizes them to provide instruction to
students at community college campuses.
Existing law, the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care
Act (PPACA), requires an applicable individual to ensure that he or
she, and any dependent of that individual, is covered under minimum
essential coverage for each month beginning after January 2013.
This bill would establish the California Health Care Coverage
Enrollment Assistance Act of 2016 to provide uninsured students of
the California State University and the California Community Colleges
with information about health care coverage options and enrollment
assistance commencing with the 2017-18 academic year. The act would,
among other things, authorize each campus of the California State
University and the California Community Colleges to develop an
informational item or amend an existing enrollment form, or Internet
Web site to provide uninsured students information about health care
coverage options. The act would authorize each campus to also include
a factsheet with its enrollment forms explaining basic information
about affordable health care coverage options for children and
families. The bill would require the State Department of Education to
develop a standardized template for the factsheet and the
informational item or amendment and would require the department to
make those templates available on its Internet Web site on or before
August 1, 2017, and provide written copies to a campus upon request.
By requiring community colleges to perform additional duties, this
bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
Existing law requires a public school, for purposes of the
2015-16, 2016-17, and 2017-18 school years, to add an informational
item to its enrollment forms, or amend an existing enrollment form,
in order to provide the parent or legal guardian information about
health care coverage options and enrollment assistance, as specified.
Existing law authorizes a school to also include a factsheet with
its enrollment forms. Existing law requires the State Department of
Education to, among other things, develop a standardized template for
the factsheet and the informational item or amendment and make those
templates available on its Internet Web site on or before August 1,
2015. Existing law repeals these provisions on January 1, 2019.
This bill would delete the repeal date for these provisions and
thereby extend these requirements indefinitely. By extending these
duties on local school districts, the bill would impose a
state-mandated local program.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local
agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the
state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that
reimbursement.
This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates
determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state,
reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to these
statutory provisions.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: yes.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 49452.9 of the Education Code is amended to
read:
49452.9. (a) For purposes of the 2015-16, 2016-17, and
2017-18 school years, Commencing with the 2015-16
school year, and each school year thereafter, a public school,
including a charter school, shall add an informational item to its
enrollment forms, or amend an existing enrollment form, in order to
provide the parent or legal guardian information about health care
coverage options and enrollment assistance.
(b) To satisfy the requirements of subdivision (a), a school may
do either of the following:
(1) Use a template developed pursuant to subdivision (d).
(2) Develop an informational item or amend an existing enrollment
form to provide information about health care coverage options and
enrollment assistance.
(c) A school may include a factsheet with its enrollment forms
explaining basic information about affordable health care coverage
options for children and families.
(d) (1) The department shall develop a standardized template for
both of the following:
(A) The informational item or amendment required by subdivision
(a).
(B) The factsheet described in subdivision (c).
(2) The department shall make any templates developed pursuant to
this subdivision available on its Internet Web site on or before
August 1, 2015, and shall, upon request, provide written copies of
the template to a school district.
(e) A school district shall not discriminate against a pupil who
does not have health care coverage or use any information relating to
a pupil's health care coverage or interest in learning about health
care coverage in any manner that would bring harm to the pupil or the
pupil's family.
(f) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1,
2019, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted
statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2019, deletes or extends
that date.
SEC. 2. Chapter 11.2 (commencing with Section 66920) is added to
Part 40 of Division 5 of Title 3 of the Education Code, to read:
CHAPTER 11.2. CALIFORNIA HEALTH CARE COVERAGE ENROLLMENT
ASSISTANCE ACT OF 2016
66920. This chapter shall be known, and may be cited, as the
California Health Care Coverage Enrollment Assistance Act of 2016.
66921. The California Health Care Coverage Enrollment Assistance
Act of 2016 is hereby established to provide uninsured students of
the California State University and the California Community Colleges
with information about health care coverage options and enrollment
assistance.
66922. (a) Commencing with the 2017-18 academic year, each campus
of the California State University and the California Community
Colleges shall identify its uninsured students and offer these
students contact information for local entities to provide health
care enrollment assistance.
(b) Commencing with the 2017-18 academic year, each campus of the
California State University and the California Community Colleges
shall offer uninsured students information about health care coverage
options.
(c) To satisfy the requirements of subdivision (a), the campus may
do any of the following:
(1) Add health insurance screening questions and contact
information for local health care enrollment assistance entities to
its enrollment forms.
(2) Develop a screening method to identify uninsured students and
offer these students contact information for local health care
enrollment entities.
(3) Partner with local organizations to ensure students who are
identified as uninsured by the campus receive health care enrollment
assistance.
(d) To satisfy the requirements of subdivision (b), the campus may
do either of the following:
(1) Use a template developed pursuant to subdivision (f).
(2) Develop an informational item or amend an existing enrollment
form or Internet Web site to provide uninsured students information
about health care coverage options.
(e) A campus of the California State University or the California
Community Colleges may include a factsheet with its enrollment forms
explaining basic information about affordable health care coverage
options for students.
(f) (1) The State Department of Education shall develop a
standardized template for both of the following:
(A) The informational item or amendment described in paragraph (2)
of subdivision (d).
(B) The factsheet described in subdivision (e).
(2) The department shall make any templates developed pursuant to
this subdivision available on its Internet Web site on or before
August 1, 2017, and shall, upon request, provide written copies of
the template to a campus of the California State University and the
California Community Colleges.
(g) A campus of the California State University or the California
Community Colleges shall not discriminate against a student who does
not have health coverage or use any information relating to a student'
s health care coverage or interest in learning about health care
coverage in any manner that would bring harm to the student.
SEC. 3. If the Commission on State Mandates determines that this
act contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to local
agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made pursuant
to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division 4 of Title 2 of
the Government Code.