Bill Text: CA AB1475 | 2009-2010 | Regular Session | Chaptered
Bill Title: Emergency medical services.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Passed) 2009-10-11 - Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 537, Statutes of 2009. [AB1475 Detail]
Download: California-2009-AB1475-Chaptered.html
BILL NUMBER: AB 1475 CHAPTERED
BILL TEXT
CHAPTER 537
FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE OCTOBER 11, 2009
APPROVED BY GOVERNOR OCTOBER 11, 2009
PASSED THE SENATE AUGUST 31, 2009
PASSED THE ASSEMBLY MAY 4, 2009
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Solorio
FEBRUARY 27, 2009
An act to amend Section 1797.98a of the Health and Safety Code,
relating to emergency medical services.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 1475, Solorio. Emergency medical services.
Existing law establishes the Maddy Emergency Medical Services
(EMS) Fund, authorizing each county to establish an emergency medical
services fund for reimbursement of EMS-related costs, and provides
that the costs of administering the fund shall be reimbursed, based
on the actual administrative costs, not to exceed 10% of the amount
of the fund.
This bill would, instead, provide that the costs of administering
the EMS Fund that are reimbursed by the fund are not to exceed the
actual costs of administering the fund or 10% of the amount of the
fund, whichever amount is lower.
Existing law, until January 1, 2014, provides for the deposit into
the EMS Fund of an additional penalty levied in the amount of $2 for
every $10 upon fines, penalties, and forfeitures collected for
criminal offenses, as specified. Existing law, until January 1, 2014,
requires 15% of the funds collected pursuant to this additional
penalty to be expended for pediatric trauma centers. Costs of
administering money deposited into the EMS Fund from this additional
penalty are to be reimbursed from the money collected, not to exceed
10%.
This bill would, instead, provide that the costs of administering
the moneys deposited from the additional penalty are reimbursed from
the moneys collected but are not to exceed the actual costs of
administering these moneys or 10% of these moneys, whichever amount
is lower.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 1797.98a of the Health and Safety Code is
amended to read:
1797.98a. (a) The fund provided for in this chapter shall be
known as the Maddy Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Fund.
(b) (1) Each county may establish an emergency medical services
fund, upon the adoption of a resolution by the board of supervisors.
The moneys in the fund shall be available for the reimbursements
required by this chapter. The fund shall be administered by each
county, except that a county electing to have the state administer
its medically indigent services program may also elect to have its
emergency medical services fund administered by the state.
(2) Costs of administering the fund shall be reimbursed by the
fund in an amount that does not exceed the actual administrative
costs or 10 percent of the amount of the fund, whichever amount is
lower.
(3) All interest earned on moneys in the fund shall be deposited
in the fund for disbursement as specified in this section.
(4) Each administering agency may maintain a reserve of up to 15
percent of the amount in the portions of the fund reimbursable to
physicians and surgeons, pursuant to subparagraph (A) of, and to
hospitals, pursuant to subparagraph (B) of, paragraph (5). Each
administering agency may maintain a reserve of any amount in the
portion of the fund that is distributed for other emergency medical
services purposes as determined by each county, pursuant to
subparagraph (C) of paragraph (5).
(5) The amount in the fund, reduced by the amount for
administration and the reserve, shall be utilized to reimburse
physicians and surgeons and hospitals for patients who do not make
payment for emergency medical services and for other emergency
medical services purposes as determined by each county according to
the following schedule:
(A) Fifty-eight percent of the balance of the fund shall be
distributed to physicians and surgeons for emergency services
provided by all physicians and surgeons, except those physicians and
surgeons employed by county hospitals, in general acute care
hospitals that provide basic, comprehensive, or standby emergency
services pursuant to paragraph (3) or (5) of subdivision (f) of
Section 1797.98e up to the time the patient is stabilized.
(B) Twenty-five percent of the fund shall be distributed only to
hospitals providing disproportionate trauma and emergency medical
care services.
(C) Seventeen percent of the fund shall be distributed for other
emergency medical services purposes as determined by each county,
including, but not limited to, the funding of regional poison control
centers. Funding may be used for purchasing equipment and for
capital projects only to the extent that these expenditures support
the provision of emergency services and are consistent with the
intent of this chapter.
(c) The source of the moneys in the fund shall be the penalty
assessment made for this purpose, as provided in Section 76000 of the
Government Code.
(d) Any physician and surgeon may be reimbursed for up to 50
percent of the amount claimed pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section
1797.98c for the initial cycle of reimbursements made by the
administering agency in a given year, pursuant to Section 1797.98e.
All funds remaining at the end of the fiscal year in excess of any
reserve held and rolled over to the next year pursuant to paragraph
(4) of subdivision (b) shall be distributed proportionally, based on
the dollar amount of claims submitted and paid to all physicians and
surgeons who submitted qualifying claims during that year.
(e) Of the money deposited into the fund pursuant to Section
76000.5 of the Government Code, 15 percent shall be utilized to
provide funding for all pediatric trauma centers throughout the
county, both publicly and privately owned and operated. The
expenditure of money shall be limited to reimbursement to physicians
and surgeons, and to hospitals for patients who do not make payment
for emergency care services in hospitals up to the point of
stabilization, or to hospitals for expanding the services provided to
pediatric trauma patients at trauma centers and other hospitals
providing care to pediatric trauma patients, or at pediatric trauma
centers, including the purchase of equipment. Local emergency medical
services (EMS) agencies may conduct a needs assessment of pediatric
trauma services in the county to allocate these expenditures.
Counties that do not maintain a pediatric trauma center shall utilize
the money deposited into the fund pursuant to Section 76000.5 of the
Government Code to improve access to, and coordination of, pediatric
trauma and emergency services in the county, with preference for
funding given to hospitals that specialize in services to children,
and physicians and surgeons who provide emergency care for children.
Funds spent for the purposes of this section, shall be known as
Richie's Fund. This subdivision shall remain in effect only until
January 1, 2014, and shall have no force or effect on or after that
date, unless a later enacted statute, that is chaptered before
January 1, 2014, deletes or extends that date.
(f) Costs of administering money deposited into the fund pursuant
to Section 76000.5 of the Government Code shall be reimbursed from
the money collected in an amount that does not exceed the actual
administrative costs or 10 percent of the money collected, whichever
amount is lower. This subdivision shall remain in effect only until
January 1, 2014, and shall have no force or effect on or after that
date, unless a later enacted statute, that is chaptered before
January 1, 2014, deletes or extends that date.
