BILL NUMBER: AB 2374	CHAPTERED  07/19/00

	CHAPTER   136
	FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE   JULY 19, 2000
	APPROVED BY GOVERNOR   JULY 19, 2000
	PASSED THE SENATE   JUNE 29, 2000
	PASSED THE ASSEMBLY   MAY 18, 2000
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY   MAY 11, 2000

INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Lempert

                        FEBRUARY 24, 2000

   An act to amend Section 1157 of the Evidence Code, relating to
discovery.



	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 2374, Lempert.  Discovery:  marriage and family therapist peer
review committees.
   Existing law exempts from discovery as evidence the proceedings
and records of specified organized committees of health care
professionals and review committees having the responsibility of
evaluation and improvement of the quality of care.
   This bill would extend this exemption to the proceedings and
records of marriage and family therapist and licensed clinical social
worker organized committees and review committees, as described
above.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:


  SECTION 1.  Section 1157 of the Evidence Code is amended to read:
   1157.  (a) Neither the proceedings nor the records of organized
committees of medical, medical-dental, podiatric, registered
dietitian, psychological, marriage and family therapist, licensed
clinical social worker, or veterinary staffs in hospitals, or of a
peer review body, as defined in Section 805 of the Business and
Professions Code, having the responsibility of evaluation and
improvement of the quality of care rendered in the hospital, or for
that peer review body, or medical or dental review or dental
hygienist review or chiropractic review or podiatric review or
registered dietitian review or veterinary review or acupuncturist
review committees of local medical, dental, dental hygienist,
podiatric, dietetic, veterinary, acupuncture, or chiropractic
societies, marriage and family therapist, licensed clinical social
worker, or psychological review committees of state or local marriage
and family therapist, state or local licensed clinical social
worker, or state or local psychological associations or societies
having the responsibility of evaluation and improvement of the
quality of care, shall be subject to discovery.
   (b) Except as hereinafter provided, no person in attendance at a
meeting of any of those committees shall be required to testify as to
what transpired at that meeting.
   (c) The prohibition relating to discovery or testimony does not
apply to the statements made by any person in attendance at a meeting
of any of those committees who is a party to an action or proceeding
the subject matter of which was reviewed at that meeting, or to any
person requesting hospital staff privileges, or in any action against
an insurance carrier alleging bad faith by the carrier in refusing
to accept a settlement offer within the policy limits.
   (d) The prohibitions in this section do not apply to medical,
dental, dental hygienist, podiatric, dietetic, psychological,
marriage and family therapist, licensed clinical social worker,
veterinary, acupuncture, or chiropractic society committees that
exceed 10 percent of the membership of the society, nor to any of
those committees if any person serves upon the committee when his or
her own conduct or practice is being reviewed.
   (e) The amendments made to this section by Chapter 1081 of the
Statutes of 1983, or at the 1985 portion of the 1985-86 Regular
Session of the Legislature, or at the 1990 portion of the 1989-90
Regular Session of the Legislature, or at the 2000 portion of the
1999-2000 Regular Session of the Legislature, do not exclude the
discovery or use of relevant evidence in a criminal action.