Bill > AB551

This bill establishes the Reproductive Health Emergency Preparedness Program (RHEPP), a statewide initiative designed to expand and improve reproductive and sexual healthcare services in emergency departments across California. Recognizing that emergency departments are often critical access points for medical care, especially in regions with shortages of obstetricians and reproductive health clinics, the bill aims to help hospitals provide comprehensive reproductive healthcare, including abortion care, miscarriage treatment, and contraception services. The program will be administered by the state health department in collaboration with California-based organizations that have expertise in reproductive health. These organizations will help recruit and select participating emergency departments, oversee funding, and provide technical assistance. Grants will be awarded competitively to emergency departments committed to expanding reproductive healthcare, with funds potentially used for staff training, clinical education, mentorship programs, medication abortion services, and developing coordinated medical responses. The bill explicitly connects to California's constitutional commitment to reproductive freedom and responds to the nationwide restrictions on abortion following the overturning of Roe v. Wade. The RHEPP will be funded through legislative appropriation or private sources and is set to operate until January 1, 2030.

Budget and Finance, Health and Social Services

https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billStatusClient.xhtml?bill_id=202520260AB551