Attorney General No.
SA95RF0066
Secretary of State No.
720
Description
HEALTH CARE BUSINESSES. CONSUMER PROTECTION. REGULATION. INITIATIVE STATUTE. Prohibits health care businesses from: discouraging health care professionals from informing patients or advocating for treatment; offering incentives for withholding care; refusing services recommended by physician or nurse without physical examination by business' own professional; conditioning coverage on arbitration agreement. Requires health care businesses to: make tax returns public; pay fees to fund the provisions of the Act; establish written criteria for denying payments which are determined by licensed health professionals. Establishes non-profit corporation to advocate for health care consumers. Authorizes public and private enforcement actions. Summary of estimate by Legislative Analyst and Director of Finance of fiscal impact on state and local governments: This measure could result in increased state administrative costs, potentially over $10 million annually, funded by state special fund revenues from fee increases imposed on health care business licensees and health facilities. The measure could result in costs of potentially several hundreds of millions of dollars annually to state and local governments as providers of health care, primarily due to provisions affecting health facility staffing and utilization review processes. The measure could also result in potentially significant indirect costs to state and local governments, as providers or purchasers of health care for employees, to the extent that the measure increases costs for health care delivery in the private sector.
Proponents
Rose Ann Demoro Executive Director California Nurses Association, 1145 Market Street, Suite 1100, San Francisco, Ca 94103 (415) 864-4141, Ext. 530; Harvey Rosenfield Executive Director Foundation For Taxpayer And Consumer Rights, 1750 Ocean Park Boulevard, #200, Santa Monica, Ca 90405 (310) 392-0522
Date
2-22-1996
Document Type
Initiative
Qualified
Failed to Qualify
Recommended Citation
Health Care Businesses. Consumer Protection. Regulation. California Initiative 720 (1996).
https://repository.uclawsf.edu/ca_ballot_inits/877