BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    �



                                                                  SB 623
                                                                  Page  1

          Date of Hearing:   August 16, 2012

                        ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
                                  Mike Gatto, Chair

                    SB 623 (Kehoe) - As Amended:  August 7, 2012 

          Policy Committee:                             HealthVote:13-6

          Urgency:     No                   State Mandated Local Program: 
          No     Reimbursable:              No

           SUMMARY  

          This bill requires the Office of Statewide Health Planning and 
          Development (OSHPD) to extend a pilot project training mid-level 
          medical practitioners to perform aspiration abortions by 15 
          months until January 1, 2014, in order to allow time to evaluate 
          and publish results of the pilot.
           
           FISCAL EFFECT  

          Negligible state fiscal impact.  

          COMMENTS  

           1)Rationale.   The author indicates this bill is necessary to 
            allow a pilot project to maintain its momentum, and to allow 
            study researchers from the University of California time to 
            achieve publication of their study results in a peer-reviewed 
            journal.  The author indicates study results thus far indicate 
            midlevel clinicians can be trained to safely provide 
            first-trimester aspiration abortions.  
             
           2)Background  .  Current law authorizes OSHPD to conduct pilot 
            projects, which sometimes waive certain scope of practice 
            laws, in order to study new workforce models or training 
            methods. OSPHD accepts applications for workforce pilot 
            projects from project sponsors.  Sponsors who apply for a 
            pilot project must have their own funding; OSHPD does not 
            provide any funding for pilot projects.  OSHPD has one 
            budgeted position monitoring all open pilot projects.

            OSHPD approved Health Workforce Pilot Project # 171 for the 
            time period March 31, 2007 - March 31, 2008, and has approved 








                                                                  SB 623
                                                                  Page  2

            four extensions since that time. The project is currently 
            approved through September 30, 2012. It is assessing the 
            ability of nurse practitioners, certified nurse midwives, and 
            physician assistance to be trained to offer vacuum aspiration 
            for abortion and miscarriage management.  Vacuum aspiration is 
            a minor surgical procedure that can be used in early pregnancy 
            and uses gentle vacuum suction to remove uterine tissue.
                
            3)Opposition.   Several groups opposed to abortion oppose this 
            bill. The California Right to Life Committee, Inc. believes 
            the extension of this project places women's health and safety 
            in danger and removes their right of choice to control their 
            own health care decisions.  The Life Priority Network (LPN) 
            questions whether patient safety can be assured if qualified 
            physicians are not available. California Catholic Conference, 
            Inc. (CCC) writes in opposition that this bill is a late 
            introduction gut-and-amend bill, designed to address the 
            failure of      SB 1338 (Kehoe) earlier this year.  (This bill 
            was heard in this form for the first time on July 3, 2012 in 
            Assembly Health Committee).

           4)Related Legislation.  SB 1338 would have allowed a NP, CNM, and 
            PA who had completed training in the Project to continue to 
            perform abortions by aspiration technique.  SB 1338 failed 
            passage in the Senate Business, Professions and Economic 
            Development Committee.  

           Analysis Prepared by  :    Lisa Murawski / APPR. / (916) 319-2081