BILL ANALYSIS
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 289|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: SB 289
Author: Ducheny (D)
Amended: 4/23/09
Vote: 21
SENATE HEALTH COMMITTEE : 11-0, 4/15/09
AYES: Alquist, Strickland, Aanestad, Cedillo, Cox,
DeSaulnier, Leno, Maldonado, Negrete McLeod, Pavley, Wolk
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : Senate Rule 28.8
SUBJECT : Hospitals: seismic safety: periodic reports
SOURCE : California Hospital Association
DIGEST : This bill requires owners of hospital buildings
that do not meet existing requirements to be retrofitted or
rebuilt by 2008 or 2013 to avoid risk of collapse in an
earthquake, and who have requested extensions of the 2008
and 2013 deadlines, to include additional information in
the reports they are required to file with the Office of
Statewide Health Planning and Development by June 30, 2011,
regarding buildings they intend to remove from acute care
service.
ANALYSIS :
Existing law:
1. Gives responsibility to the Office of Statewide Health
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Planning and Development (OSHPD) for reviewing and
approving all plans relating to construction, additions
to, reconstruction, or alteration of, hospital
buildings, as defined. Before adopting any such plans,
hospitals must submit the plans to OSHPD for approval
and pay an application filing fee that is determined by
the office and that is based on the project's estimated
construction cost.
2. Establishes timelines for hospital compliance with
seismic safety standards. By January 1, 2008, buildings
posing a significant risk of collapse and a danger to
the public must be rebuilt or retrofitted to be capable
of withstanding an earthquake, or be removed from acute
care service. By January 1, 2030, hospital buildings
must be capable of remaining intact after an earthquake,
and must also be capable of continued operation and
provision of acute care medical services, or else be
changed to non-acute care use.
3. Allows OSHPD to grant delays of up to five years beyond
the 2008 deadline under certain circumstances, including
upon a demonstration that compliance will result in a
loss of health care capacity that may not be provided by
other general acute care hospitals within a reasonable
proximity. Existing law also authorizes an extension of
up to an additional two years beyond this for hospitals
that have already received extensions of the January 1,
2008, seismic safety compliance deadline, if specified
criteria are met, including that the hospital building
is under construction at the time of the request for
extension, and that the hospital submitted a
construction timeline at least two years prior to the
applicable deadline and is making reasonable progress
toward meeting the deadline, but factors beyond the
hospital's control make it impossible for the hospital
to meet the deadline.
4. Permits a hospital owner, in lieu of retrofitting or
rebuilding hospital buildings at risk of collapse by
2013, to instead replace them by January 1, 2020, if the
hospital owner meets several conditions and OSHPD
certifies that the hospital owner lacks the financial
capacity to meet seismic standards, as defined. Among
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the conditions the hospital must meet to be eligible for
this extension is that the hospital:
(1) Maintains a Medi-Cal contract with the
California Medical Assistance Commission (CMAC),
with exceptions.
(2) Maintains basic emergency medical services if
the hospital provided such services as of July 1,
2007.
(3) Meets one of the following:
(A) The hospital is located within a Medically
Underserved Area or a Health Professions
Shortage Area, as specified.
(B) OSHPD determines, by means of a health
impact assessment, that removal of the building
or buildings from service may diminish
significantly the availability or accessibility
of health care services to an underserved
community.
(C) CMAC determines that the hospital is an
essential provider of Medi-Cal services in the
hospital's service area.
(D) The hospital demonstrates that, based on
annual utilization data submitted to the office
for 2006 or later, the hospital had in one year
over 30 percent of all discharges for either
Medi-Cal or indigent patients in the county in
which the hospital is located.
5. Requires an owner of a general acute care hospital
building that is classified as a nonconforming
Structural Performance Category-1 (SPC-1) building
(defined in regulations as a building that is at risk of
collapse in an earthquake) who has not requested an
extension of the 2008 deadline, to submit a report to
the office no later than April 15, 2007, describing the
status of each building in complying with the deadline.
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6. Requires the report to identify the following:
(1) Each building that is subject to the deadline.
(2) The project number or numbers for retrofit or
replacement of each building.
(3) The projected construction start date or dates
and projected construction completion date or
dates.
(4) The building or buildings to be removed from
acute care service and the projected date or dates
of this action.
7. Requires owners of general acute care hospital buildings
classified as nonconforming SPC-1 buildings who have
requested an extension of the 2008 deadline to submit
similar reports by June 30, 2009, and June 30, 2011.
8. Requires OSHPD to adopt regulations and standards to
administer its responsibilities, and to submit building
standards relating to seismic safety for hospital
buildings and relating to requests for extensions of
deadlines for seismic compliance to the California
Building Standards Commission for adoption and approval.
This bill:
1. Requires owners of hospital buildings that are
classified as nonconforming, SPC-1 buildings, who have
requested extensions of the 2008 deadlines for
retrofitting or rebuilding, to include additional
information in the reports they are required to file
with OSHPD by June 30, 2011, regarding buildings they
intend to remove from acute care service. The
additional information would include:
(1) The inpatient services currently delivered in
the buildings to be removed from acute care
service.
(2) The number of inpatient beds and patient beds
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and patient days, by unit and type of service in
2008, 2009, and 2010.
(3) Request hospitals report to OSHPD regarding and
net change in the number of inpatient beds, by type
of unit and type of service, taking into account
buildings to be taken out of service, retrofitting
or replacement of those buildings, and beds
provided in any other buildings used for general
acute care inpatient services by the facility.
Background
Hospital Seismic Safety Requirements . In response to the
6.7 magnitude Northridge earthquake in January 1994, the
Legislature passed, and then-Governor Wilson signed into
law, SB 1953 (Alquist), Chapter 740, Statutes of 1994,
establishing seismic standards for hospital buildings as
well as deadlines for compliance with those standards.
Based on its latest assessment of seismic risk, OSHPD has
classified 948 (35 percent) of California's hospital
buildings as Structural Performance Category-1 (SPC-1)
buildings, meaning that they are at risk for collapse in an
earthquake. These buildings must be retrofitted, replaced,
or removed from acute care services by January 1, 2008 (or
2013 if they receive extensions). Another 231 buildings
(roughly nine percent) are categorized as SPC-2 buildings,
meaning that they are not at risk of collapse, but may not
be reparable or functional following a strong quake. These
buildings must be brought into compliance with the
requirements of SB 1953 by 2030 or be removed from acute
care service. Finally, over 1,536 buildings (56 percent)
are SPC-3, SPC- 4, and SPC- 5, meaning that they are
considered capable of providing services following a strong
quake and may be used without restriction beyond 2030.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
SUPPORT : (Verified 5/5/09)
California Hospital Association (source)
Hospital Corporation of America
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ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : The California Hospital
Association, the sponsor of this bill, states that this
bill will add important information to the reports
hospitals must report to the state concerning buildings
they intend to remove from service by 2013, rather than
retrofit. Specifically, the information will include the
types of services provided by the buildings to be removed
from service and number of patient visits by type of
service. CHA believes this information will give the state
a more complete picture of the effect of hospital closures
that result from hospital seismic mandates.
CTW:do 5/5/09 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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