Bill Text: CA AB918 | 2015-2016 | Regular Session | Chaptered
Bill Title: Seclusion and restraint: developmental services: health facilities.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Passed) 2015-09-28 - Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 340, Statutes of 2015. [AB918 Detail]
Download: California-2015-AB918-Chaptered.html
BILL NUMBER: AB 918 CHAPTERED
BILL TEXT
CHAPTER 340
FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE SEPTEMBER 28, 2015
APPROVED BY GOVERNOR SEPTEMBER 28, 2015
PASSED THE SENATE AUGUST 31, 2015
PASSED THE ASSEMBLY SEPTEMBER 1, 2015
AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 26, 2015
AMENDED IN SENATE JULY 16, 2015
AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 25, 2015
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 28, 2015
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 6, 2015
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Mark Stone
(Coauthor: Senator McGuire)
FEBRUARY 26, 2015
An act to add Sections 4436.5 and 4659.2 to the Welfare and
Institutions Code, relating to seclusion and restraint.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 918, Mark Stone. Seclusion and restraint: developmental
services: health facilities.
Existing law requires the Secretary of California Health and Human
Services to develop technical assistance and training programs to
support the efforts of community care facilities, group homes,
skilled nursing facilities, intermediate care facilities, and mental
health rehabilitation centers, among others, to reduce or eliminate
the use of seclusion and behavioral restraints in these facilities.
Existing law requires specified entities within the California Health
and Human Services Agency to take steps to establish a system of
mandatory, consistent, timely, and publicly accessible data
collection regarding the use of seclusion and behavioral restraints
in state hospitals operated by the State Department of State
Hospitals, facilities operated by the State Department of
Developmental Services, and other specified facilities that utilize
seclusion or behavioral restraints.
Under existing law, the Lanterman Developmental Disabilities
Services Act, the State Department of Developmental Services
contracts with regional centers to provide services and supports to
individuals with developmental disabilities. Existing law requires
all vendors and long-term health care facilities, as defined, to
report special incidents to a regional center, including, among other
things, incidents of physical and chemical restraint. Existing law
requires a regional center that receives information from a special
incident report regarding the use of physical or chemical restraint,
to report that information to the department, as specified.
This bill would require the department to ensure the consistent,
timely, and public reporting of data it receives from regional
centers and other specified facilities regarding the use of physical
or chemical restraint and to publish that information on its Internet
Web site.
This bill would also require regional center vendors that provide
residential services or supported living services, long-term health
care facilities, as defined, and acute psychiatric hospitals, as
defined, to report each death or serious injury of a person occurring
during, or related to, the use of seclusion, physical restraint, or
chemical restraint, as specified.
This bill would make related findings and declarations.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:
(a) The President's New Freedom Commission on Mental Health (2003)
reported that the use of behavioral restraint and seclusion poses
significant risks for adults and children, including serious injury
or death, retraumatizing people with a history of trauma or abuse,
the loss of dignity, and other psychological harm.
(b) Although California currently requires the tracking and public
reporting of the use of seclusion and restraint in state
developmental centers and collects data regarding the use of
restraint through the department's special incident reporting system,
the data concerning the use of restraint in community residential
and other long-term care facilities and acute psychiatric hospitals
serving individuals with developmental disabilities is not publicly
reported.
(c) One of the best methods to achieve the goal of a reduction in
the use of restraint is to ensure consistent data collection and
analysis and public access to this data.
(d) It is the intent of the Legislature in enacting this act to
ensure that data regarding the use of restraint in community
residential and other long-term care facilities and acute psychiatric
hospitals is publicly available as a means of ensuring quality
services to individuals with developmental disabilities and a
reduction in the use of restraint.
SEC. 2. Section 4436.5 is added to the Welfare and Institutions
Code, to read:
4436.5. (a) For the purposes of this section, the following
definitions apply:
(1) "Physical restraint" means any behavioral or mechanical
restraint as defined in Section 1180.1 of the Health and Safety Code.
(2) "Chemical restraint" means a drug that is used to control
behavior and that is used in a manner not required to treat the
patient's medical conditions.
(3) "Long-term health care facility" means a facility, as defined
in Section 1418 of the Health and Safety Code, that is required to
report to a regional center pursuant to Section 54327 of Title 17 of
the California Code of Regulations.
(4) "Acute psychiatric hospital" means a facility, as defined in
subdivision (b) of Section 1250 of the Health and Safety Code,
including an institution for mental disease, that is a regional
center vendor.
(5) "Regional center vendor" means an agency, individual, or
service provider that a regional center has approved to provide
vendored or contracted services or supports pursuant to paragraph (3)
of subdivision (a) of Section 4648.
(b) The department shall ensure the consistent, timely, and public
reporting of data it receives from regional centers pursuant to
Section 54327 of Title 17 of the California Code of Regulations
regarding the use of physical restraint, chemical restraint, or both,
by all regional center vendors who provide residential services or
supported living services pursuant to Section 4689, and by long-term
health care facilities and acute psychiatric hospitals serving
individuals with developmental disabilities.
(c) The department shall publish quarterly on its Internet Web
site the following data, segregated by individual regional center
vendor that provides residential services or supported living
services and each individual long-term health care facility and acute
psychiatric hospital that serves persons with developmental
disabilities:
(1) The number of incidents of physical restraint.
(2) The number of incidents of chemical restraint.
SEC. 3. Section 4659.2 is added to the Welfare and Institutions
Code, to read:
4659.2. (a) For the purposes of this section, the following
definitions apply:
(1) "Physical restraint" means any behavioral or mechanical
restraint, as defined in Section 1180.1 of the Health and Safety
Code.
(2) "Chemical restraint" means a drug that is used to control
behavior and that is used in a manner not required to treat the
patient's medical conditions.
(3) "Seclusion" means involuntary confinement of a person alone in
a room or an area as defined in subdivision (e) of Section 1180.1 of
the Health and Safety Code.
(4) "Long-term health care facility" means a facility, as defined
in Section 1418 of the Health and Safety Code, that is required to
report to a regional center pursuant to Section 54327 of Title 17 of
the California Code of Regulations.
(5) "Acute psychiatric hospital" means a facility, as defined in
subdivision (b) of Section 1250 of the Health and Safety Code,
including an institution for mental disease, that is a regional
center vendor.
(6) "Regional center vendor" means an agency, individual, or
service provider that a regional center has approved to provide
vendored or contracted services or supports pursuant to paragraph (3)
of subdivision (a) of Section 4648.
(b) All regional center vendors that provide residential services
or supported living services, long-term health care facilities, and
acute psychiatric hospitals shall report each death or serious injury
of a person occurring during, or related to, the use of seclusion,
physical restraint, or chemical restraint, or any combination
thereof, to the agency designated pursuant to subdivision (i) of
Section 4900 no later than the close of the business day following
the death or serious injury. The report shall include the encrypted
identifier of the person involved, and the name, street address, and
telephone number of the facility.
