BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 217
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Date of Hearing: May 4, 2011
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Felipe Fuentes, Chair
AB 217 (Carter) - As Amended: April 7, 2011
Policy Committee: Labor and
Employment Vote: 5-1
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program:
Yes Reimbursable: Yes
SUMMARY
This bill makes the following changes to current law, which
authorizes patient smoking areas in long-term health care
facilities, as specified:
1)Prohibits the patient smoking area from being located in the
patient's room.
2)Requires the patient smoking area to be located outdoors in a
courtyard, patio, or other outdoor space that can be monitored
by staff.
3)Specifies the patient smoking area be located in an area that
reasonably prevents smoke from entering the facility or
patient rooms.
4)Specifies these modifications to current law do not prohibit a
long-term health care facility from continuing or implementing
a smoke-free policy inside and outside the facility.
FISCAL EFFECT
1)This bill imposes a state-mandated local program by expanding
the definition of an infraction to include violations related
to smoking areas in long-term health care facilities. Local
enforcement costs, however, are not state reimbursable.
2)Minor enforcement costs to Occupational Safety and Health
Administration (Cal-OSHA).
COMMENTS
AB 217
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1)Purpose . Existing law generally prohibits smoking in places
of employment. Statute, however, does provide numerous
exemptions to this prohibition. For example, smoking is
allowed in hotel lobbies, hotel meeting/banquet rooms,
warehouse facilities, gaming clubs, and long-term health care
facilities. Current law defines a "long-term health care
facility" as a skilled nursing facility, intermediate care
facility (including one for the developmentally disabled).
According to the author, "In December 2010, outside a
California long-term health care facility, a 67-year-old man
died from burns he suffered when he was smoking a cigarette
which he dropped on his gown and ignited into flames. The
Center for Disease Control and fire safety trainings in health
care facilities remind providers that smoking should never be
allowed where oxygen is used or stored. Medical oxygen can
saturate clothing, fabric and hair. �This bill] eliminates
secondhand tobacco smoke exposure in long-term health care
facilities to protect non-smoking workers and patients who are
chronically or terminally ill, patients with chronic
obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), stroke victims and
others who are most vulnerable to complications from exposure
to over 7,000 harmful chemicals found in tobacco smoke."
2)Related legislation . SB 575 (DeSaulnier), pending in the
Senate Appropriations Committee, removes specified exemptions
in existing law that allow smoking in certain indoor
workplaces as well as restrict indoor tobacco smoking in
owner-operated businesses.
3)Previous legislation . AB 1467 (DeSaulnier) proposed to
eliminate most of the exemptions in statute related to smoking
places of employment; this measure, however, maintained the
exemption for long-term health care facilities. This bill was
vetoed by Governor Schwarzenegger in October 2007 with the
following message:
"California has led the nation in effective smoking control
activities, achieving the second lowest rate of smoking among
adults in the nation. The cessation of smoking is a component
of my plan to encourage Californian's to lead a healthy
lifestyle and thereby reduce health care costs. While more
needs to be done to reduce smoking rates, I do not agree that
placing further restrictions on business owners is the correct
AB 217
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approach. Instead, California can further reduce smoking rates
in other ways, such as increasing access to cessation services
offered through the highly effective California Smokers'
Helpline."
Analysis Prepared by : Kimberly Rodriguez / APPR. / (916)
319-2081