2025 New Law Alert: California
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Last year, numerous pieces of legislation impacting physicians were signed into law in California. The following new health laws are particularly relevant to physician practices and medical professional liability.
This alert is based in part on information obtained from the California Medical Association.
All laws are effective January 1, 2025, unless otherwise noted.
New California Healthcare laws by topic:
Allied Health Professionals:
SB 1451 – Professions and vocations
Prohibits anyone other than a licensed physician and surgeon from using “doctor,” “physician,” “Dr.,” “M.D.,” “D.O.,” or any other terms or letters implying the person is a physician, in a health care setting.
Extends pharmacist test-to-treat authority for COVID to January 1, 2026.
For the purposes of advanced practice nurse practitioner certification under AB 890 (passed in 2020), prohibits limiting NP’s clinical experience to a single category of practice; allows an NP with at least 3 full-time equivalent years or 4,600 hours of direct patient care within the past 5 years to be deemed to have met the transition-to-practice requirements. Eliminates requirement for NPs practicing independently to inform patients of their right to see a physician or to use specific phrases to communicate their non-physician status to Spanish language speakers.
(Amends Business and Professions Code §§115.4, 115.5, 115.6, 135.4, 1926, 2054, 2837.101, 2837.103, 2837.104, 2837.105, 3765, 4052.04, 4602, 4621, 7423, 8593, 8593.1, 9880.1, and 19237; adds Business and Professions Code §§2097.5, 4069, and 9880.5; repeals Business and Professions Code §1905.2)
MIEC note: This new law impacts various aspects of licensure, including expanding the prohibited initials to include “D.O.” As to nurse practitioners, the law facilitates the transition to practice requirements for certification as a “103 NP,” which allows NPs to practice without standardized procedures. The law also reduces the technical requirements and limits liability exposure for physicians who sign transition to practice attestations for prospective 103 NPs. NPs who have practiced for 3 years as a 103 NP can qualify for certification as a 106 NP, which allows for fully independent practice. For more information, see Nurse Practitioner Expanded Scope of Practice in California.
AB 2107 – Clinical laboratory technology: remote review
Allows pathologists to remotely review digital materials (such as lab data, results, and images) under a clinical laboratory’s primary Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA) certificate, without requiring separate licenses or registrations for the remote locations; contingent on the State Department of Public Health determining that the authorization conforms to federal law by January 1, 2026, in consultation with the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Service.
(Amends Business and Professions Code §1265; adds Business and Professions Code §1265.2; repeals Business and Professions Code §1265.3)
Confidential Information:
SB 1223 – Consumer privacy: sensitive personal information: neural data
Adds a consumer’s neural data to the definition of “sensitive personal information” for purposes of the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018 (CCPA), which grants consumers specified rights and protections over their personal information collected by a (non-HIPAA) business (CCPA exempts HIPAA covered entities). Defines “neural data” to mean information that is generated by measuring the activity of a consumer’s central or peripheral nervous system, and that is not inferred from nonneural information.
(Amends Civil Code §1798.140870)
MIEC Note: While this law addresses the growth of neurotechnology and concerns over consumer protection, it may have implications for medical providers who collect and maintain this information as part of diagnostic testing (EEG data, for example).
Consent:
AB 866 – Juveniles: care and treatment
Authorizes a dependent child of the juvenile court who is 16 years of age or older to consent to receive medications for opioid use disorder from a licensed narcotic treatment program as replacement narcotic therapy without the consent of their parent, guardian, person standing in loco parentis, or social worker, and without a court order to the extent permitted by federal law.
(Amends Welfare and Institutions Code §369)
Controlled Substances:
AB 2018 – Controlled substances: fenfluramine
Removes fenfluramine from list of Schedule IV–controlled substances under the California Uniform Controlled Substances Act, in alignment with federal Controlled Substances Act, under which fenfluramine was descheduled in 2022. Removes fenfluramine from list of controlled substances that are a crime to possess or sell. As a result of the state descheduling, prescribers will no longer need to consult the CURES database before prescribing fenfluramine.
(Amends Health and Safety Code §§11057 and 11375)
AB 2115 – Controlled substances: clinics.
Allows a practitioner authorized to prescribe a narcotic drug at a nonprofit or free clinic to dispense the narcotic drug from clinic supply for the purpose of relieving acute withdrawal symptoms while arrangements are being made for referral for treatment; the clinic dispensing the narcotic must comply with specified reporting, labeling, and recordkeeping requirements. Authorizes a practitioner to dispense a Schedule II–controlled substance (which may be from a hospital pharmacy inventory) directly to an ultimate user in amount not to exceed a 72-hour supply to initiate maintenance or detox treatment. Removes levo-alpha-acetylmethadol (LAAM) from list of authorized medications for use in narcotic replacement therapy by narcotic treatment programs (NTPs). Directs Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) to update specified regulations regarding NTPs to comply with federal rules. Urgency statute effective Sep. 30, 2024.
(Amends Penal Code §849)
MIEC Note: This law aims to facilitate the treatment of acute narcotic withdrawal in patients who don’t have immediate access to full treatment programs, by permitting clinics to provide up to a 3-day supply of Schedule II controlled substances to start maintenance or detoxification treatments. Clinics must adhere to strict recordkeeping, reporting, and labeling requirements.
SB 607 – Controlled substances.
Expands the requirement for a prescriber to discuss specified information about opioids to any patient before directly dispensing or issuing the first prescription for a controlled substance containing an opioid in a single course of treatment (previous law applied only to minors). Deletes previous exception for treatment for chronic intractable pain. Retains other exceptions for prescribing to hospital, skilled nursing facility, intermediate care facility, home health agency, or hospice patients; for treatment for terminal illness or substance use disorder; for patients receiving emergency care or emergency surgery; or in instances where in the prescriber’s professional judgment, providing the required disclosures would be detrimental to patient health or safety, or in violation of patient rights regarding confidentiality.
(Amends Health and Safety Code §11158.1)
MIEC Note: Existing law required a prescriber, with certain exceptions, to discuss information including risks of addiction and the safe use of these medications before issuing their first prescription for an opioid to a minor. This bill expands this requirement to include opioid prescriptions in adult patients.
Health Care Facilities:
AB 3161 – Health facilities: patient safety and anti-discrimination
Requires health facilities to include anonymous reporting in their patient safety event reporting systems, analyze safety events by sociodemographic factors to identify disparities, address racism and discrimination in patient care, and submit biannual patient safety plans to the State Department of Public Health starting in 2026, with penalties for noncompliance and public access to the plans online.
(Amends Health and Safety Code §1279.6)
Medical Practice and Ethics:
AB 2013 – Generative artificial intelligence: training data transparency
Beginning January 1, 2026, any developer of a generative AI system or service released on or after January 1, 2022, and made publicly available to Californians, regardless of whether the use of the system includes compensation, must publicly disclose documentation on the data used to train the AI. Documentation must also be disclosed before each substantial modification of such a system thereafter.
(Adds Civil Code Division 3, Part 4, Title 15.2 (commencing with §3110))
AB 3030 – Health care services: artificial intelligence (AI)
Requires any health facility, clinic, physician’s office, or group practice that uses generative AI to generate written or verbal patient communications to include both (1) a disclaimer that indicates to the patient that a communication was generated by generative artificial intelligence, and (2) clear instructions describing how a patient may contact a human health care physician or clinician. AI-generated communications that have been read and reviewed by a human licensed or certified physician and health care clinician are exempt from this requirement.
(Adds Health and Safety Code Chapter 2.13, Division 2, (commencing with §1157))
MIEC Note: This law aims to create transparency between physicians and patients when using AI-generated patient communications. When using AI-generated information in any aspect of a medical practice, information should be carefully reviewed, corrected as necessary, and approved by a licensed provider before being integrated into care. This law requires clear patient notification when using AI-generated content, such as responses to patient portal messages, that have not been reviewed by a human.
Professional Licensing and Discipline:
AB 2164 – Physicians and surgeons licensure requirements: disclosure.
In an effort to destigmatize physicians from seeking mental health services, this law prohibits the California Medical Board from requiring licensure applicants to disclose certain conditions or disorders that do not impair their ability to practice medicine safely. However, it allows the board to request information about participation in mental health or substance use disorder treatment programs and mandates that applicants with impairing conditions be given information about probationary or limited practice licenses. Requires licensed physicians to complete and return a periodic questionnaire, either electronically or by mail, without disclosing prohibited information.
(Amends Business and Professions Code §2425; adds Business and Professions Code §2090)
SB 639 – Medical professionals: course requirements.
Requires all general internists and family physicians, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants with a patient population in which 25% of their patients are 65 years or older to complete at least 20% of their continuing medical education (CME) or continuing education (CE) requirements in the field of gerontology, the special care needs of patients with dementia, or the care of older patients.
(Amends Business and Professions Code §§2190.3 and 2811.5; adds Business and Professions Code §3524.6)
MIEC Note: This new law clarifies the preexisting CME requirements for licensees that treat geriatric patients to require focused education in gerontology and dementia care.
Recordkeeping:
AB 3221 – Department of Managed Health Care: review of records
Requires health care service plans, including any provider or subcontractor providing health care of other services to a plan, to provide their records, books, and papers to the California Department of Managed Health Care in electronic form, when available. Requires electronic records to be digitally searchable to the greatest extent feasible.
(Amends Health and Safety Code §§1380, 1381, and 1386)
Reproductive Issues:
AB 2319 – California Dignity in Pregnancy and Childbirth Act.
Requires an implicit bias program to include recognition of intersecting identities and the potential associated biases, and extends implicit bias training requirements for health care providers involved in perinatal care to include all providers who are regularly assigned to provide perinatal care, as defined, including but not limited to those in primary care clinics, alternative birthing centers, outpatient clinics, or emergency departments; as well as to all persons who are regularly assigned to positions where they interact with perinatal patients, including those who facilitate, control, or coordinate access to timely and appropriate medical treatment, and any others who provide medical or ancillary treatment. Adds prenatal care to the definition of perinatal care for this purpose. Requires a health care provider subject to this requirement to complete initial basic training on implicit bias based on the revised components by June 1, 2025, for current health care providers, and within 6 months of the start date for new hires. Requires facilities, by February 1 of each year starting in 2026, to provide proof of compliance and report certain data to the Attorney General regarding compliance rates for all providers who are subject to the training requirement. Authorizes the Attorney General to assess penalties for noncompliance.
(Amends Health and Safety Code §§123630.1, 123630.2, and 123630; adds Health and Safety Code §§123630.6 and 123630.7)
MIEC Note: This bill expands the requirement for implicit bias training to include more types of physicians, health care clinicians, and health facility employees under the California Dignity in Pregnancy and Childbirth Act, aiming to improve patient care and reduce disparities.
Workforce and Office Safety Issues:
AB 977 – Emergency departments: assault and battery.
Under existing law, an assault or battery committed against a physician or nurse engaged in rendering emergency medical care outside a hospital, clinic, or other health care facility is punishable by up to 1 year imprisonment and a fine of up to $2,000. This new law expands the scope of this punishment to assault or battery of any health care provider that occurs within the emergency department of a hospital.
Enhances criminal penalties for an assault or battery committed against a physician, nurse, or other health care worker of a hospital engaged in providing services within the emergency department, making such crimes punishable by imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding one year, by a fine not exceeding $2,000, or by both that fine and imprisonment. Authorizes a health facility that maintains and operates an emergency department to post a notice in the emergency department stating that an assault or battery against staff is a crime, and may result in a criminal conviction.
(Adds Health and Safety Code §1317.5a; amends Penal Code §§241 and 243)