Sen. Dodd Introduces Hospital Pandemic and Emergency Response Bill

SACRAMENTO – Sen. Bill Dodd, D-Napa, introduced legislation today to help California hospitals respond to public health crises including pandemics and other emergencies by streamlining the processing of licenses for health professionals, expanding insurance coverage and making it easier to increase bed space for patients.

“California hospitals have been slammed, not only during the pandemic but with increasingly destructive wildfires and other natural disasters,” Sen. Dodd said. “When a public emergency strikes, they need to be able to respond. This bill will help them adapt to fast-changing conditions, serving patients as quickly as possible.”

Sen. Dodd’s bill, Senate Bill 979, contains several key provisions. It makes it easier for hospitals serving emergency zones to expand capacity and bed space, allowing better treatment and triaging for victims of pandemics, wildfire, earthquakes and other emergencies. It also eases the onboarding process for medical personnel coming in from other states. Additionally, it relaxes insurance restrictions for patients seeking treatment outside of their network coverage areas, ensuring they get medical coverage wherever an emergency hits.

The bill is sponsored by the California Hospital Association.

“One of COVID’s most valuable lessons is that California must be able to create capacity to care for more people when urgently needed,” said Carmela Coyle, president and CEO of the California Hospital Association. “SB 979 gives the state flexibility for things like hiring health care workers quickly or re-purposing hospital space, all of which can mean the difference between life and death.”

###

Senator Bill Dodd represents the 3rd Senate District, which includes all or portions of Napa, Solano, Yolo, Sonoma, Contra Costa, and Sacramento counties. You can learn more about the district and Senator Dodd at www.sen.ca.gov/dodd.