SACRAMENTO, Calif. — This yr, Gov. Gavin Newsom affirmed abortion entry, calling California “a proud reproductive freedom state” and criticizing Republicans throughout the nation for attempting to remove households’ rights.
He signed laws mandating that insurance coverage corporations cowl in vitro fertilization. He supported limiting college students’ cellphone use in colleges and signed a nation-leading ban on meals dye at school snacks and drinks. And he endorsed a invoice permitting companies to function Amsterdam-style hashish cafés.
Nonetheless, in a heated election cycle with Vice President Kamala Harris, a Californian, on the presidential ticket, the Democratic governor was noticeably reluctant to impose further business rules.
Newsom vetoed a number of well being and security payments, incessantly citing price issues. However many of those proposals risked perpetuating California stereotypes trumpeted by presidential nominee Donald Trump and different Republicans. The governor rejected gas stove warning labels, in addition to speeding alerts for brand spanking new automobiles, even drawing tepid praise on social media from GOP Meeting chief James Gallagher, who credited Newsom for vetoing “some fairly dangerous/silly payments.”
A lot of the legal guidelines Newsom authorised take impact Jan. 1, 2025, whereas some have longer phase-in instances. Listed here are the governor’s actions on key well being payments:
Well being Care
Group well being care service plans and incapacity insurance coverage should cowl infertility and fertility providers below SB 729, together with for LGBTQ+ individuals, typically beginning in mid-2025. The California Affiliation of Well being Plans warns of upper premiums because of this.
Native well being officers can examine non-public detention services, together with six immigration detention facilities, below SB 1132.
And the governor signed AB 869, permitting small, rural, or “distressed” hospitals to get an extension of as much as three years on a 2030 authorized deadline for earthquake retrofits. However he vetoed SB 1432, which might have allowed all hospitals to use for an extension of the deadline for as much as 5 years.
Newsom additionally vetoed SB 966, which might have regulated the middlemen often known as pharmacy profit managers and banned some enterprise practices that critics say enhance prices and restrict customers’ decisions. He additionally rejected AB 2467, which might have mandated well being care protection for menopause, and AB 3129, which might have required the state attorney general’s approval for transactions involving well being care suppliers and personal fairness companies. And he vetoed AB 2104 and SB 895, which might have allowed some neighborhood faculty districts to supply bachelor’s levels in nursing.
Medical Debt
Credit score reporting companies can be prohibited from together with medical debt in customers’ credit score reviews below SB 1061, however last-minute amendments weakened the protections. Earlier this yr, the Biden administration proposed federal rules barring unpaid medical payments from affecting sufferers’ credit score scores.
Medi-Cal
Medi-Cal, which gives well being take care of about 15 million low-income individuals, will cowl hospital emergency rooms’ therapy of psychiatric emergencies below AB 1316.
However Newsom rejected AB 1975, which might have made medically supportive meals and diet a Medi-Cal profit, and AB 2339, which might have expanded Medi-Cal protection of telehealth.
Psychological Well being
Newsom signed more than a dozen bills aimed toward boosting behavioral well being care, together with via California’s new court-ordered therapy program.
However citing costs, Newsom rejected an annual scholarship fund for college students pursuing a psychological well being career in the event that they labored for 3 years in that new therapy program. Critics say SB 26 ought to have broadened the scholarship to all county behavioral well being applications.
Abortion
California will enhance penalties for obstructing or impeding entry to reproductive well being care providers, and for posting private info or images of a affected person or supplier. These are at present misdemeanors; AB 2099 would make them punishable as misdemeanors or felonies.
Deliberate Parenthood Associates of California additionally backed AB 2085, smoothing approval of latest well being facilities, and SB 1131, supporting California’s Household PACT (Planning, Entry, Care, and Remedy) program for individuals with household incomes under 200% of the federal poverty degree.
Ageing
Newsom authorised a dozen bills associated to growing old, together with measures requiring elevated coaching for legislation enforcement (AB 2541) and well being care professionals (SB 639) in serving to individuals with dementia. AB 1902 requires higher entry to prescription labels for individuals who have hassle seeing or who want translated directions. And he signed one other package deal of payments aimed extra broadly at serving to people with disabilities.
Violence Prevention
Assault or battery in opposition to a physician, doctor, nurse, or different well being care employee inside an ER may convey as much as a yr in county jail, a $2,000 fantastic, or each below AB 977. That makes it the same maximum punishment as for assaulting a medical employee within the subject. California legislation beforehand set a lesser penalty for assault inside an ER.
The state is taking extra steps to discourage gun violence with two dozen new legal guidelines. Amongst them, SB 53 will increase necessities for safely storing firearms, consistent with a push from the White House. AB 2621 will enhance legislation enforcement coaching and revise insurance policies on utilizing gun violence restraining orders, whereas AB 2917 expands when courts can impose gun violence restraining orders.
And hospitals will finally must display sufferers, members of the family, and guests for weapons at entrances below AB 2975.
Substance Use
AB 1976 would require office first-aid kits to incorporate naloxone or different medicine that may reverse opioid overdoses, whereas defending those that administer the naloxone from civil legal responsibility.
Below AB 1775, native jurisdictions will enable retailers to promote noncannabis meals and drinks and have stay music and different performances in areas the place hashish consumption is allowed. Meeting member Matt Haney, a Democrat from San Francisco, stated his intent is to permit Dutch-style hashish coffeehouses. Newsom authorised the measure regardless of vetoing Haney’s related invoice final yr, amid critics’ concern that the measure would undermine California’s nation-leading effort outlawing indoor smoking.
And AB 3218 furthers enforcement of California’s ban on flavored tobacco, handed in 2020.
Youth Welfare
California is the primary state to typically bar public colleges from offering meals containing crimson dye 40 or any of 5 different artificial meals dyes utilized in merchandise together with Froot Loops and Flamin’ Hot Cheetos. AB 2316 is Democratic Meeting member Jesse Gabriel’s follow-up to his legislation last year that banned a chemical present in Skittles sweet.
A invoice to extend transparency with the usage of restraints and seclusion rooms in state-licensed short-term residential therapeutic applications grew to become legislation with some high-profile help from celeb Paris Hilton. She backed SB 1043, which may also require the state Division of Social Companies to publish the data on a public dashboard.
And faculty districts’ intercourse training curricula should embrace menstrual well being below AB 2229.
However Newsom vetoed AB 2442, which might have sped licensing for suppliers of gender-affirming care, and SB 954, which might have offered free condoms in excessive colleges.
Girls’s Well being
Promoting menstrual merchandise with deliberately added PFAS, also referred to as “eternally chemical substances,” can be banned below AB 2515. PFAS, quick for perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, have been linked to critical well being issues.
AB 2319 was handed in an effort to improve enforcement of a 2019 legislation aimed toward decreasing the disproportionate price of maternal mortality among Black women and different pregnant ladies of colour.
AB 2527 is aimed toward enhancing therapy of pregnant ladies who’re incarcerated. Critics needed the unique model, which banned solitary confinement, and had been upset when it was amended to permit as much as 5 days of confinement if jail officers discover a security or safety risk.
AB 518 is aimed toward rising participation within the CalFresh diet program, a part of a package of healthy-food bills.
And below SB 1300, the general public will get extra discover when hospitals plan to shut their maternity wards. The measure will enhance the discover requirement to 120 days, up from the present 90.
However Newsom rejected AB 1895, which might have required six months’ discover to state companies of potential maternity ward closures. The companies would then have been required to conduct a neighborhood affect evaluation.
Social Media
SB 1504 broadens California’s Cyberbullying Safety Act regulating social media platforms to use to minors as an alternative of pupils. Social media platforms that deliberately violate the legislation may face civil penalties of as much as $10,000, together with compensatory and punitive damages. These damages may very well be sought by a mother or father, a authorized guardian, or numerous prosecutors. Below present legislation, damages are capped at $7,500 and could also be pursued solely by the state lawyer basic.
SB 976 restricts “addictive feeds” to minors, together with banning social media notifications to minors throughout faculty hours.
And AB 3216 will restrict the usage of smartphones in colleges.
This text was produced by KFF Health News, which publishes California Healthline, an editorially impartial service of the California Health Care Foundation.
