BILL ANALYSIS
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THIRD READING
Bill No: SB 769
Author: Alquist (D)
Amended: 8/16/10
Vote: 27 - Urgency
PRIOR VOTES NOT RELEVANT
SENATE HEALTH COMMITTEE : 8-0, 8/25/10
AYES: Alquist, Strickland, Aanestad, Cedillo, Leno,
Negrete McLeod, Pavley, Romero
NO VOTE RECORDED: Vacancy
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 76-0, 8/19/10 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : Federal funding: supplemental appropriations:
pandemic
influenza
SOURCE : Health Office Association of California
DIGEST : This bill provides that federal funding received
pursuant to the federal Supplemental Appropriations Act,
2009 for pandemic flu preparedness and response is subject
to appropriation by the Legislature for allocation by the
Department of Public Health (DPH) pursuant to the 2008-09
federally approved collaborative state-local plan;
authorizes DPH to establish a minimum allocation of
$100,000 to a local health jurisdiction (LHJ), as
specified; and, requires DPH to expand its electronic
communications capacity to accommodate every hospital and
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primary care clinic during a public health emergency.
Assembly Amendments delete the original version of the
bill, dealing with economic stimulus and local health
administration, and the bill now deals with federal funding
and pandemic influenza.
ANALYSIS :
Existing law :
1. Establishes procedures and requirements to govern the
allocation to, and expenditure by, local health
jurisdictions of federal funding received for the
prevention of, and response to, bioterrorist attacks and
other public health emergencies.
2. Provides that these procedures apply only when local
health jurisdictions are designated by a federal or
state agency to manage the funds for public health
preparedness and response to bioterrorist attacks and
other public health emergencies, pursuant to a specified
federally approved plan.
3. Repeals these provisions as of January 1, 2011, as
specified.
This bill:
1. Provides that federal funding received pursuant to the
federal Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2009 for
pandemic flu preparedness and response is subject to
appropriation by the Legislature for allocation by DPH
pursuant to the 2008-09 federally approved collaborative
state-local plans.
2. Authorizes DPH to establish a minimum allocation of
$100,000 to a local health jurisdiction, as specified.
3. Requires DPH to expand its electronic communications
capacity to accommodate every hospital and primary care
clinic during a public health emergency.
4. Requires funds received for pandemic flu response, in
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the case that a local health jurisdiction (LHJ) does not
apply for all of its authorized allocation, to be made
available by DPH to other LHJs that apply for them.
5. Permits any addition funds not allocated to LHJ to be
used by DPH for pandemic flu response activities.
Contains an urgency clause to ensure that the provisions
of this bill go into immediate effect upon enactment.
Background
According to the author's office, this bill is needed to
ensure appropriate allocation of federal funding for
emergency response and pandemic preparedness. The author's
office states that for the past several years, the state
has received federal funds to be used for emergency
preparedness and response to such events as a pandemic flu
outbreak. Under the existing state and local collaborative
plan approved by the federal government, 70 percent of the
funding is distributed to LHJs, while 30 percent remains
with the state. According to the author's office, this
bill is needed to add the Supplemental Appropriations Act
funds to the previous stream of federal funds and ensure
that LHJs receive an adequate share of the funding. The
author's office further contends this bill facilitates
timely distribution of the funds.
According to DPH, novel H1N1 is a new influenza virus which
was first detected in people in the United States in April
2009 and which spreads from person-to-person, similar to
how regular seasonal influenza viruses spread. The
symptoms of novel H1N1 flu virus in people are similar to
the symptoms of seasonal flu and include fever, cough, sore
throat, runny or stuffy nose, body aches, headache, chills,
and fatigue. Some people infected with H1N1 also report
diarrhea and vomiting. As of August 25, 2009, California
had 1,528 hospitalizations, including 128 deaths, due to
H1N1 flu (for comparison, DPH reports that each year,
approximately 4,500 Californians die from seasonal flu).
DPH states that California hospital admissions and
emergency room visits due to flu remain higher than normal
for this time of year and higher than what is typically
seen during the traditional flu season (October to May).
Although the H1N1 flu appears to be relatively mild, public
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health officials remain concerned because flu viruses
mutate quickly and can become more virulent, in which case,
a more serious outbreak could occur in the fall.
On June 24, 2009, President Obama signed the Supplemental
Appropriations Act, which provides $1.85 billion nationally
to prepare for and respond to an influenza pandemic,
including the development and purchase of vaccine,
antivirals, medical supplies, diagnostics, and other
surveillance tools, and to assist international efforts and
respond to international needs relating to the 2009 H1N1
influenza outbreak. No less than $350 million of the
appropriation is intended for upgrading state and local
capacity. The supplemental funding is intended to continue
to address the current H1N1 influenza outbreak, but also to
prepare for the potential of future outbreaks, increased
severity of the H1N1 virus, or for the emergence of a new
influenza strain. Therefore, the funding may be used for
an array of pandemic influenza preparedness and response
activities. In July and August, the federal government
awarded DPH over $46 million through the Supplemental
Appropriations Act and on August 27, 2009, the
Schwarzenegger Administration submitted a Section 28
application to the Legislature for authority to use the
funds. DPH anticipates additional supplemental funding,
but the federal government has not announced the award
amounts for the remaining funds.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
According to the Assembly Appropriations Committee, a
one-time allocation of $28 million in federal funding from
the federal Public Health and Social Services Fund related
to pandemic flu generally and the H1N1 virus specifically,
to be shared 30 percent-70 percent (state/county) among DPH
and LHJs. Additional unknown future distributions of
federal funding in the 30 percent-70 percent sharing ratio.
At this time, an additional $5.8 billion of federal funds
nationally has been set aside by Congress to support
additional public health activities related to pandemic
flu.
SUPPORT : (Verified 8/19/10)
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Health Offices Association of California (source)
Santa Clara County, Board of Supervisors
ASSEMBLY FLOOR :
AYES: Adams, Ammiano, Anderson, Arambula, Bass, Beall, Bill
Berryhill, Tom Berryhill, Blakeslee, Block, Blumenfield,
Bradford, Brownley, Buchanan, Caballero, Charles
Calderon, Carter, Chesbro, Conway, Cook, Coto, Davis, De
La Torre, De Leon, DeVore, Eng, Evans, Feuer, Fletcher,
Fong, Fuentes, Fuller, Furutani, Gaines, Galgiani,
Garrick, Gatto, Gilmore, Hall, Harkey, Hayashi,
Hernandez, Hill, Huber, Huffman, Jeffries, Jones, Lieu,
Logue, Bonnie Lowenthal, Ma, Mendoza, Miller, Monning,
Nava, Nestande, Niello, Nielsen, V. Manuel Perez,
Portantino, Ruskin, Salas, Saldana, Silva, Skinner,
Smyth, Solorio, Audra Strickland, Swanson, Torlakson,
Torres, Torrico, Tran, Villines, Yamada, John A. Perez
NO VOTE RECORDED: Hagman, Knight, Norby, Vacancy
CTW:do 8/26/10 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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