BILL NUMBER: SB 544 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN SENATE MARCH 21, 2011
INTRODUCED BY Senator Price
FEBRUARY 17, 2011
An act to amend Section 650 of the Business and
Professions Code, relating to healing arts. An act to
add Section 1623 to the Business and Professions Code, relating to
dentistry.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 544, as amended, Price. Healing arts.
Dental Board of California: collection of fees, fines, and cost
recovery.
Existing law, the Dental Practice Act, provides for the licensure
and regulation of dentists by the Dental Board of California.
Existing law establishes specified fees for licenses, permits, and
certificates issued by the board. Existing law also sets forth
specified fines and penalties for violations of the Dental Practice
Act.
This bill would authorize the board to contract with a collection
agency to collect outstanding fees, fines, or cost recovery amounts
from persons who owe those moneys to the board, as specified. The
bill would require the contract with a collection agency to contain
specified safeguards to protect an individual's personal information
from unauthorized disclosure and to provide for the liability of the
collection agency for the unauthorized use or disclosure of that
information.
Under existing law, a healing arts licensee, except as specified,
may refer a person to any laboratory, pharmacy, clinic, or health
care facility, as defined, even if the licensee has a proprietary
interest or coownership in the laboratory, pharmacy, clinic, or
health care facility.
This bill would make a technical, nonsubstantive change to a
related provision.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no
yes . State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 1623 is added to the
Business and Professions Code , to read:
1623. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the board
may contract with a collection agency for the purpose of collecting
outstanding fees, fines, or cost recovery amounts from any person who
owes that money to the board, and, for those purposes, may provide
to the collection agency the personal information of that person,
including his or her birth date, telephone number, and social
security number. The contractual agreement shall provide that the
collection agency may use or release personal information only as
authorized by the contract, and shall provide safeguards to ensure
that the personal information is protected from unauthorized
disclosure. The contractual agreement shall hold the collection
agency liable for the unauthorized use or disclosure of personal
information received or collected under this section.
(b) The board shall not use a collection agency to recover
outstanding fees, fines, or cost recovery amounts until the person
has exhausted all appeals and the decision is final.
SECTION 1. Section 650 of the Business and
Professions Code is amended to read:
650. (a) Except as provided in Chapter 2.3 (commencing with
Section 1400) of Division 2 of the Health and Safety Code, the offer,
delivery, receipt, or acceptance by any person licensed under this
division or the Chiropractic Initiative Act of any rebate, refund,
commission, preference, patronage dividend, discount, or other
consideration, whether in the form of money or otherwise, as
compensation or inducement for referring patients, clients, or
customers to any person, irrespective of any membership, proprietary
interest, or coownership in or with any person to whom these
patients, clients, or customers are referred is unlawful.
(b) The payment or receipt of consideration for services other
than the referral of patients which is based on a percentage of gross
revenue or similar type of contractual arrangement shall not be
unlawful if the consideration is commensurate with the value of the
services furnished or with the fair rental value of any premises or
equipment leased or provided by the recipient to the payer.
(c) The offer, delivery, receipt, or acceptance of any
consideration between a federally qualified health center, as defined
in Section 1396d(l)(2)(B) of Title 42 of the United States Code, and
any individual or entity providing goods, items, services,
donations, loans, or a combination thereof to the health center
entity pursuant to a contract, lease, grant, loan, or other
agreement, if that agreement contributes to the ability of the health
center entity to maintain or increase the availability, or enhance
the quality, of services provided to a medically underserved
population served by the health center, shall be permitted only to
the extent sanctioned or permitted by federal law.
(d) Except as provided in Chapter 2.3 (commencing with Section
1400) of Division 2 of the Health and Safety Code and in Sections
654.1 and 654.2 of this code, it shall not be unlawful for any person
licensed under this division to refer a person to any laboratory,
pharmacy, clinic (including entities exempt from licensure pursuant
to Section 1206 of the Health and Safety Code), or health care
facility solely because the licensee has a proprietary interest or
coownership in the laboratory, pharmacy, clinic, or health care
facility, provided, however, that the licensee's return on investment
for that proprietary interest or coownership shall be based upon the
amount of the capital investment or proportional ownership of the
licensee which ownership interest is not based on the number or value
of any patients referred. Any referral excepted under this section
shall be unlawful if the prosecutor proves that there was no valid
medical need for the referral.
(e) Except as provided in Chapter 2.3 (commencing with Section
1400) of Division 2 of the Health and Safety Code and in Sections
654.1 and 654.2 of this code, it shall not be unlawful to provide
nonmonetary remuneration, in the form of hardware, software, or
information technology and training services, as described in
subsections (x) and (y) of Section 1001.952 of Title 42 of the Code
of Federal Regulations, as amended October 4, 2007, as published in
the Federal Register (72 Fed. Reg. 56632 and 56644), and subsequently
amended versions.
(f) "Health care facility" shall mean a general acute care
hospital, acute psychiatric hospital, skilled nursing facility,
intermediate care facility, and any other health facility licensed by
the State Department of Public Health under Chapter 2 (commencing
with Section 1250) of Division 2 of the Health and Safety Code.
(g) A violation of this section is a public offense and is
punishable upon a first conviction by imprisonment in a county jail
for not more than one year, or by imprisonment in the state prison,
or by a fine not exceeding fifty thousand dollars ($50,000), or by
both that imprisonment and fine. A second or subsequent conviction is
punishable by imprisonment in the state prison or by imprisonment in
the state prison and a fine of fifty thousand dollars ($50,000).