California Assembly Bill AB2374 Amended / Bill

 BILL NUMBER: AB 2374AMENDED BILL TEXT AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 19, 2014 AMENDED IN SENATE JULY 1, 2014 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 6, 2014 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 8, 2014 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.  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.  (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  prohibit   authorize  the department  from approving   to revoke approval of  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.  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.   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.  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.  (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.   (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.  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)  (1)    Except for licensed professionals, as defined by the department, the department shall require that  a counselor   an individual providing counseling services  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.  The   (2)     The  department  shall not approve   may revoke approval of  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.  (3) To be eligible to be approved by the department as a certifying organization, an organization is required to do both of the following:   (A) Deny a request for registration or certification of an applicant whose registration or certification as a counselor has been previously revoked.   (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.   (c) The department may conduct periodic reviews of a certifying organization to determine compliance with subdivision (b).   (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).   (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.