Bill Text: CA AB1859 | 2023-2024 | Regular Session | Amended

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Coroners: duties.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)

Status: (Passed) 2024-09-27 - Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 684, Statutes of 2024. [AB1859 Detail]

Download: California-2023-AB1859-Amended.html

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Amended  IN  Senate  August 05, 2024

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2023–2024 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill

No. 1859

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Introduced by Assembly Member Alanis

January 18, 2024

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An act to add Section 102863 to the Health and Safety 27523 to the Government Code, relating to coroners.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

AB 1859, as amended, Alanis. Coroners: duties.

Existing law requires a county coroner to inquire into and determine the circumstances, manner, and cause of certain deaths. Existing law either requires or authorizes a county coroner, under certain circumstances, to perform, or cause to be performed, an autopsy on a decedent. Existing law imposes certain requirements on a coroner conducting a postmortem examination or autopsy on an unidentified body or human remains. Existing law requires a coroner to investigate deaths that occurred under specified conditions, including without medical attendance, to ascertain as many of the facts as possible.

This bill would require a coroner to test the bodily fluid of a deceased person for the presence of xylazine if the coroner reasonably suspects the person died from an accidental or intentional opioid overdose or if the person was administered an overdose intervention drug prior to death and was unresponsive to the drug. The bill would also require the coroner to report a positive result to the State Department of Public Health and the Overdose Detection Mapping Application Program. Program and provide the State Department of Public Health with a quarterly report on positive results, as specified. The bill would require the department to post the number of positive results specified information, including, among other things, the total number of xylazine-positive results by county, on the California Overdose Surveillance Dashboard located on the department’s internet website. By imposing additional duties upon local officials, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.

Digest Key

Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: YES   Local Program: YES  

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Bill Text

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.Section 102863 is added to the Health and Safety Code, to read:

102863.

(a)A coroner shall test bodily fluid extracted during an autopsy of a deceased person to determine whether the bodily fluid contained any amount, including a trace amount, of xylazine at the time of the person’s death if either of the following occur:

(1)The coroner reasonably suspects the cause of a person’s death to be the accidental or intentional overdose of an opioid.

(2)The person was administered an overdose intervention drug prior to death and was unresponsive to the overdose intervention drug.

(b)The coroner shall report a positive result indicating the presence of xylazine to the State Department of Public Health and the Overdose Detection Mapping Application Program managed by the Washington/Baltimore High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area program.

(c)The department shall post the number of positive results on the California Overdose Surveillance Dashboard located on the department’s internet website.

SECTION 1.

 Section 27523 is added to the Government Code, to read:

27523.

 (a) A coroner shall test the bodily fluid extracted during the autopsy of a deceased person to determine if any amount, including a trace amount, of xylazine was present at the time of the person’s death in either of the following circumstances:

(1) The coroner reasonably suspects that the cause of the person’s death was an accidental or intentional overdose of an opioid.

(2) The person was administered an overdose intervention drug prior to death and was unresponsive to the overdose intervention drug.

(b) The coroner shall report a positive result indicating the presence of xylazine to the Overdose Detection Mapping Application Program managed by the Washington/Baltimore High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area program and provide the State Department of Public Health with a quarterly report on positive results that includes the total number of tests performed and the Secretary of State file number from the death certificate of each positive case.

(c) The department shall post the following information on the California Overdose Surveillance Dashboard located on the department’s internet website:

(1) The total number of xylazine-positive results reported to the department.

(2) The number of xylazine-positive results by county.

(3) The number of xylazine-positive overdose deaths, per 100,000 population.

SEC. 2.

 If the Commission on State Mandates determines that this act contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division 4 of Title 2 of the Government Code.