Bill > AB1386

This bill amends California's Health and Safety Code to require general acute care hospitals to include perinatal services as a basic service, starting on an unspecified future date. The bill mandates that the State Department of Public Health establish a process to approve or deny "perinatal service compliance plans" for hospitals that do not currently provide perinatal services. Hospitals without existing perinatal services will be required to submit a compliance plan that includes maintaining written transfer agreements with hospitals that do provide perinatal services, submitting a financial report demonstrating their lack of financial capacity to establish such services, describing measures taken to establish perinatal services, and meeting any additional requirements determined by the department. Because this bill expands the scope of potential criminal penalties for non-compliance, it is considered a state-mandated local program. However, the bill specifies that no reimbursement will be required for implementing these changes, specifically because the act creates potential new criminal infractions. The overall goal appears to be ensuring broader access to perinatal healthcare services across general acute care hospitals in California by creating a structured pathway for hospitals to develop or partner in providing these essential services.

Budget and Finance, Health and Social Services

https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billStatusClient.xhtml?bill_id=202520260AB1386