CA AB 408
in committeePhysician Health and Wellness Program.
California · 2025-2026 Regular Session · lower
Description
Existing law, the Medical Practice Act, provides for the licensure and regulation of physicians and surgeons and licensed midwives by the Medical Board of California. A violation of the act is a crime. Existing law authorizes the board to establish a Physician and Surgeon Health and Wellness Program to support a physician and surgeon in their rehabilitation from substance abuse to ensure the physician and surgeon remains able to practice medicine in a manner that will not endanger the public health and safety and that will maintain the integrity of the medical profession. Existing law requires the board to contract with a third party for the program's administration in accordance with specified provisions of the Public Contract Code. Existing law provides that participation in the program shall not be a defense to any disciplinary action that may be taken by the board. Existing law requires the program to comply with the Uniform Standards Regarding Substance-Abusing Healing Arts Licensees adopted by the Substance Abuse Coordination Committee of the Department of Consumer Affairs. Existing law establishes the Physician and Surgeon Health and Wellness Program Account in the Contingent Fund of the Medical Board of California for the support of the program. This bill would revise and recast those provisions and would instead authorize the board to establish a Physician Health and Wellness Program to support, treat, monitor, and rehabilitate physicians and surgeons and other professionals licensed by the board with impairing physical and mental health conditions that may impact their ability to practice their profession in a reasonably safe, competent, and professional manner. The bill would require the administering entity to be a nonprofit entity and would require the contract with the administering entity to include procedures on specified topics. The bill would exempt the program from the Uniform Standards Regarding Substance-Abusing Healing Arts Licensees. The bill would exempt program records relating to current or former program participants from disclosure under the California Public Records Act, except as specified. The bill would authorize the board to establish advisory committees to assist in carrying out the duties of the administering entity, and would establish duties and responsibilities authorized to be performed by a committee. The bill would rename the Physician and Surgeon Health and Wellness Program Account as the Physician Health and Wellness Program Account, and would authorize the board to seek and use grant funds and gifts from public or private sources to pay any cost associated with the program. The bill would require the board to annually report to the Legislature and make available to the public the amount and source of funds. The bill would require a licensee to report a license to the administering entity or the board if they believe the licensee is impaired. By expanding the scope of a crime under the Medical Practice Act, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would make a person who reports information or takes action in connection with the bill's provisions immune from civil liability for reporting information or taking the action, except as specified. The bill would make the program inapplicable to the Osteopathic Medical Board of California. Existing constitutional provisions require that a statute that limits the right of access to the meetings of public bodies or the writings of public officials and agencies be adopted with findings demonstrating the interest protected by the limitation and the need for protecting that interest. This bill would make legislative findings to that effect. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.
- Introduced
- 2025-03-24
- Status date
- —
- Latest action
- 2026-06-26 — In committee: Set, second hearing. Hearing canceled at the request of author.
- Bill type
- bill
- Last updated
- —
Subjects
Sponsors
- Bermanauthor
Committees
Not provided by source.
Action timeline
2025-02-04
Read first time. To print.
reading-1
2025-02-05
From printer. May be heard in committee March 7.
2025-03-24
Referred to Coms. on B. & P. and JUD.
referral-committee
2025-03-24
From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to Com. on B. & P. Read second time and amended.
amendment-introduction,amendment-passage,committee-passage,reading-1,reading-2,referral-committee
2025-03-25
Re-referred to Com. on B. & P.
referral-committee
2025-04-21
From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to Com. on B. & P. Read second time and amended.
amendment-introduction,amendment-passage,committee-passage,reading-1,reading-2,referral-committee
2025-04-22
Re-referred to Com. on B. & P.
referral-committee
2025-04-22
From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on JUD. (Ayes 16. Noes 0.) (April 22). Re-referred to Com. on JUD.
committee-passage,committee-passage-favorable,referral-committee
2025-04-30
From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 10. Noes 0.) (April 29). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
committee-passage,committee-passage-favorable,referral-committee
2025-05-14
In committee: Hearing postponed by committee.
2025-05-21
From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 14. Noes 1.) (May 21).
committee-passage,committee-passage-favorable
2025-05-22
Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
reading-1,reading-2,reading-3
2025-05-27
Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Senate. (Ayes 72. Noes 0. Page 1735.)
passage,reading-1,reading-3
2025-05-28
In Senate. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment.
reading-1,referral-committee
2025-06-04
Referred to Coms. on B. P. & E.D. and JUD.
referral-committee
2025-06-26
In committee: Hearing postponed by committee.
2025-07-07
From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on JUD. (Ayes 7. Noes 1.) (July 7). Re-referred to Com. on JUD.
committee-passage,committee-passage-favorable,referral-committee
2025-07-08
From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to committee. Read second time, amended, and re-referred to Com. on JUD.
amendment-introduction,amendment-passage,committee-passage,reading-1,reading-2,referral-committee
2025-07-09
In committee: Set, first hearing. Hearing canceled at the request of author.
2026-06-26
In committee: Set, second hearing. Hearing canceled at the request of author.
Versions
Documents
Votes
Do pass and be re-referred to the Committee on [Judiciary]
2025-04-22 · pass · 16-0
Member-level votes (18)
- Lowenthal: yes
- Elhawary: yes
- Ahrens: yes
- Bauer-Kahan: yes
- Berman: yes
- Flora: yes
- Haney: yes
- Irwin: yes
- Krell: yes
- Alanis: yes
- Chen: yes
- Caloza: yes
- Jackson: yes
- Pellerin: yes
- Nguyen: yes
- Hadwick: yes
- Bains: other
- Macedo: other
Do pass and be re-referred to the Committee on [Appropriations]
2025-04-29 · pass · 10-0
Member-level votes (12)
- Sanchez: yes
- Papan: yes
- Zbur: yes
- Connolly: yes
- Dixon: yes
- Harabedian: yes
- Stefani: yes
- Bryan: yes
- Kalra: yes
- Pacheco: yes
- Macedo: other
- Bauer-Kahan: other
Do pass.
2025-05-21 · pass · 14-1
Member-level votes (15)
- Pellerin: yes
- Ta: yes
- Fong: yes
- Calderon: yes
- Pacheco: yes
- Elhawary: yes
- Sanchez: yes
- Mark González: yes
- Wicks: yes
- Arambula: yes
- Dixon: yes
- Caloza: yes
- Solache: yes
- Hart: yes
- Tangipa: no
AB 408 Berman Assembly Third Reading
2025-05-27 · pass · 72-0
Member-level votes (79)
- Alanis: yes
- Carrillo: yes
- Bonta: yes
- Mark González: yes
- Sanchez: yes
- Michelle Rodriguez: yes
- Berman: yes
- Pellerin: yes
- Lackey: yes
- Valencia: yes
- Pacheco: yes
- Aguiar-Curry: yes
- Muratsuchi: yes
- Schultz: yes
- Petrie-Norris: yes
- Solache: yes
- Calderon: yes
- Fong: yes
- Krell: yes
- Davies: yes
- Irwin: yes
- Connolly: yes
- Lee: yes
- Hadwick: yes
- Rogers: yes
- Chen: yes
- Kalra: yes
- Ahrens: yes
- Schiavo: yes
- Celeste Rodriguez: yes
- Gallagher: yes
- Gipson: yes
- Haney: yes
- Sharp-Collins: yes
- Caloza: yes
- Ramos: yes
- Ransom: yes
- Hoover: yes
- Patterson: yes
- Harabedian: yes
- Bauer-Kahan: yes
- Flora: yes
- Patel: yes
- Quirk-Silva: yes
- Wilson: yes
- Lowenthal: yes
- Papan: yes
- Dixon: yes
- Tangipa: yes
- Wicks: yes
- Ta: yes
- Bryan: yes
- Alvarez: yes
- Elhawary: yes
- Hart: yes
- Jackson: yes
- Zbur: yes
- Ward: yes
- Ortega: yes
- Wallis: yes
- Castillo: yes
- Stefani: yes
- Blanca Rubio: yes
- Ávila Farías: yes
- Boerner: yes
- Gabriel: yes
- Garcia: yes
- McKinnor: yes
- Soria: yes
- Rivas: yes
- Addis: yes
- Arambula: yes
- Nguyen: other
- Macedo: other
- Bennett: other
- Jeff Gonzalez: other
- Ellis: other
- Bains: other
- DeMaio: other
Do pass, but first be re-referred to the Committee on [Judiciary]
2025-07-07 · pass · 7-1
Member-level votes (11)
- Niello: yes
- Strickland: yes
- Archuleta: yes
- Arreguín: yes
- Grayson: yes
- Choi: yes
- Weber Pierson: yes
- Ashby: no
- Smallwood-Cuevas: other
- Umberg: other
- Menjivar: other
Related bills
No related bills recorded for this bill.
Official source
Attribution
Data from openstates_bulk_csv, retrieved 2026-07-24T01:34:27.960412Z
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