Amended in Senate August 19, 2014

Amended in Senate July 1, 2014

Amended in Assembly May 6, 2014

Amended in Assembly April 8, 2014

California Legislature—2013–14 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 2374

Introduced by Assembly Member Mansoor

February 21, 2014

An act to amend Section 11833 of, and to add Section 11830.01 to, the Health and Safety Code, relating to substance abuse treatment.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 2374, as amended, Mansoor. Substance abuse: recovery and treatment services.

(1) Existing law grants the Department of Health Care Services the sole authority in state government to license adult alcoholism or drug abuse recovery or treatment facilities. The department is authorized to issue a license to specified types of facilities if certain criteria are met. Existing regulations require licensees to report specified events and incidents to the department, including, among others, the death of a resident at a licensed facility.

This bill would require the department to design its death investigation policy to ensure that the death of a resident of a licensed facility is addressed and investigated by the department in a timely manner. The bill would specify the content of telephonic and written reports of resident deaths occurring in a licensed facility that are required to be reported to the department.

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This bill would require a licensed facility to submit to the department a telephonic report within 24 hours, and a written report within 7 calendar days, of the event or incident.

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(2) Existing law grants the department the sole authority in state government to determine the qualifications, including the appropriate skills, education, training, and experience of personnel working within alcoholism or drug abuse recovery and treatment programs licensed, certified, or funded under state law. The department, by regulation, requires that a person who will provide counseling services to those programs to register with, and be certified by, a nationally accredited certifying organization approved by the department.

This bill would begin delete prohibit end delete begin insert authorize end insert the department begin delete from approving end delete begin insert to revoke approval of end insert a certifying organization for those purposes that does not, prior to registering or certifying an individual, contact other department-approved certifying organizations to determine whether the individual has ever had his or her registration or certification revoked. begin insert The bill would require that an organization, to be eligible to be approved by the department for those purposes, deny a request for registration or certification of an applicant whose registration or certification as a counselor has been previously revoked, and to send an applicant a written notice of denial, including a statement that the applicant has the right to appeal that denial in accordance with applicable laws and regulations. end insert

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This bill would, notwithstanding certain rulemaking provisions of the Administrative Procedure Act, authorize the department to implement, interpret, or make specific the provisions described above by all-county letters, plan letters, plan or provider bulletins, or similar instructions, until the time the department adopts regulations. The bill would require the department to adopt those regulations by December 31, 2017.

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Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.  

Section 11830.01 is added to the Health and
Safety Code, to read:

11830.01.  

(a) The department’s death investigation policy
shall be designed to ensure that a resident’s death is addressed and
investigated by the department in a timely manner.

(b) The telephonic and written reports of resident deaths
occurring in a licensed facility that are required to be reported to
the department shall include, but not be limited to, a description
of the event or incident, including the time, location, and nature
of the event or incident, a list of immediate actions that were taken,
including persons contacted, and a description of the followup
action that is planned, including, but not limited to, steps taken to
prevent a future death.

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(c) A licensed facility shall submit a telephonic report described
in subdivision (b), that includes the event or incident and all
information required pursuant to subdivision (b) that is known at
the time of the report, to the department within 24 hours of the
event or incident.

end insert begin insert

(d)  A licensed facility shall submit a written report described
in subdivision (b), that includes all information required pursuant
to subdivision (b), to the department within seven calendar days
of the event or incident.

end insert

SEC. 2.  

Section 11833 of the Health and Safety Code is
amended to read:

11833.  

(a) The department shall have the sole authority in
state government to determine the qualifications, including the
appropriate skills, education, training, and experience of personnel
working within alcoholism or drug abuse recovery and treatment
programs licensed, certified, or funded under this part.

(b)  begin insert (1) end insert begin insert   end insert Except for licensed professionals, as defined by the
department, the department shall require that begin delete a counselor end delete begin insert an
individual providing counseling services end insert working within a program
described in subdivision (a) be registered with or certified by a
certifying organization approved by the department to register and
certify counselors. begin delete The end delete

begin insert (2) end insert begin insert   end insert begin insert The end insert department begin delete shall not approve end delete begin insert may revoke approval of end insert
a certifying organization that does not, prior to registering or
certifying an individual, contact other department-approved
certifying organizations to determine whether the individual has
ever had his or her registration or certification revoked.

begin insert

(3) To be eligible to be approved by the department as a
certifying organization, an organization is required to do both of
the following:

end insert begin insert

(A) Deny a request for registration or certification of an
applicant whose registration or certification as a counselor has
been previously revoked.

end insert begin insert

(B) Send an applicant a written notice of denial that includes
a statement that the applicant has the right to appeal that denial
in accordance with applicable laws and regulations.

end insert begin insert

(c) The department may conduct periodic reviews of a certifying
organization to determine compliance with subdivision (b).

end insert begin insert

(d) (1) Notwithstanding Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section
11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code,
the department shall implement, interpret, or make specific this
section by means of all-county letters, plan letters, plan or provider
bulletins, or similar instructions until the time the department
adopts regulations pursuant to paragraph (2).

end insert begin insert

(2) The department shall, by December 31, 2017, adopt
regulations to implement, interpret, or make specific this section,
in accordance with the requirements of Chapter 3.5 (commencing
with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the
Government Code.

end insert