California Assembly Bill AB444 Amended / Bill

 BILL NUMBER: AB 444AMENDED BILL TEXT AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 1, 2015 INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Gipson (Coauthor: Senator Pan) FEBRUARY 23, 2015 An act to amend Section 1279.7 of the Health and Safety Code, relating to health facilities. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST AB 444, as amended, Gipson. Health facilities: epidural  and external feeding  connectors. Existing law, as of January 1, 2016, prohibits a health facility, as defined, from using an epidural connector  or an enteral feeding connector,  that would fit into a connector other than the type it was intended for, unless an emergency or urgent situation exists and the prohibition would impair the ability to provide health care. Existing law also requires a health facility to develop a patient safety plan and,  as of   until  January 1, 2016, requires that plan to include measures to prevent adverse events associated with misconnecting  enteral feeding and  epidural lines. Violation of these provisions is a misdemeanor. This bill would make  these   the  provisions  relating to an epidural connector  operative as of January 1,  2017.   2017, and would make the provisions relating to an enteral feeding connector operative as of July 1, 2016. The bill would make conforming changes.  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 1279.7 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read: 1279.7. (a) A health facility, as defined in subdivision (a), (b), (c), or (f) of Section 1250, shall implement a facility-wide hand hygiene program. (b) Commencing January 1, 2017, a health facility, as defined in subdivision (a), (b), (c), or (f) of Section 1250, is prohibited from using an epidural connector that would fit into a connector other than the type it was intended for, unless an emergency or urgent situation exists and the prohibition would impair the ability to provide health care. (c) Commencing January 1, 2016, a health facility, as defined in subdivision (a), (b), (c), or (f) of Section 1250, is prohibited from using an intravenous connector  or an enteral feeding connector  that would fit into a connector other than the type it was intended for, unless an emergency or urgent situation exists and the prohibition would impair the ability to provide health care.  (d) Commencing July 1, 2016, a health facility, as defined in subdivision (a), (b), (c), or (f) of Section 1250, is prohibited from using an enteral feeding connector that would fit into a connector other than the type it was intended for, unless an emergency or urgent situation exists and the prohibition would impair the ability to provide health care.   (d)   (e)  The Advanced Medical Technology Association shall, on January 1 of each year until the standards are developed, provide the Legislature with a report on the progress of the International Organization for Standardization in developing new design standards for connectors for intravenous, epidural, or enteral applications.  (e)   (f)  A health facility that is required to develop a patient safety plan pursuant to Section 1279.6 shall include in the patient safety plan measures to prevent adverse events associated with misconnecting intravenous, enteral feeding, and epidural lines. This subdivision shall become inoperative as to epidural connectors upon the operative date of subdivision  (b)   (b),  and as to intravenous  connectors upon the operative date of subdivision (c).  and  as to  enteral  feeding  connectors upon the operative date of subdivision  (c).   (d).