BILL ANALYSIS Ó SB 675 Page 1 Date of Hearing: August 19, 2015 ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS Jimmy Gomez, Chair SB 675 (Liu) - As Amended July 16, 2015 ----------------------------------------------------------------- |Policy |Health |Vote:|19 - 0 | |Committee: | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |-------------+-------------------------------+-----+-------------| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |-------------+-------------------------------+-----+-------------| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: YesReimbursable: No SUMMARY: This bill establishes requirements related to family caregivers of patients being discharged from a hospital. Specifically, this bill requires a hospital to: SB 675 Page 2 1)Provide each patient, as part of the discharge planning process, an opportunity to identify a family caregiver who may assist in post hospital care. 2)Provide an opportunity for the patient and his or her family caregiver to engage in the discharge planning process. 3)Ensure that discharge planning is appropriate to the condition and acuity of the patient and the location to where the patient will be discharged. FISCAL EFFECT: Minor and absorbable costs to the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) to verify hospital compliance (Licensing and Certification Fund). COMMENTS: 1)Purpose. According to the author, unpaid family caregivers provide the majority of long-term care (LTC) support for their loved ones, yet the health and LTC system is slow to recognize them as partners. This bill is intended to formally recognize family caregivers and ensure they get information and support they need to successfully care for their loved ones post-discharge. 2)Background. According to the Select Committee on Aging and Long-Term Care's 2014 report, A Shattered System: Reforming Long Term Care in California, one of the critical areas SB 675 Page 3 needing reform is hospital-to-home transitions. This bill is consistent with the report's recommendations to enact legislation requiring hospitals to provide greater recognition to, and support for, caregivers. 3)Related Legislation. ACR 38 (Brown), pending on the Senate Appropriations Committee suspense file, establishes a task force on family caregiving with twenty members appointed by the Senate and Assembly. It also requires the task force to consider issues relating to family caregivers and report to the Legislature on those issues no later than July 1, 2018. Analysis Prepared by:Lisa Murawski / APPR. / (916) 319-2081