Family physicians. (1) Existing law, the Dental Practice Act, provides for the licensure and regulation of dentists by the Dental Board of California. Existing law makes it unprofessional conduct for a dentist to fail to obtain the written informed consent of a patient before administering general anesthesia and, until January 1, 2022, conscious sedation, and, for a minor, requires the written informed consent to include a statement that encourages the patient to explore all options available for the child’s anesthesia for their dental treatment and consult with the child’s dentist or pediatrician as needed.
This bill would revise the content of the informed consent statement to specify that the patient is encouraged to consult with the child’s dentist, pediatrician, or family physician as needed.
(2) Existing law, the Nursing Practice Act, provides for the licensure and regulation of the practice of nursing by the Board of Registered Nursing and authorizes the board to issue a certificate to practice nurse-midwifery to a person who meets educational standards established by the board or the equivalent of those educational standards. Existing law authorizes the board to appoint a committee of qualified physicians and nurses, including obstetricians and nurse-midwives, to develop the necessary standards relating to educational requirements, ratios of nurse-midwives to supervising physicians, and associated matters.
This bill would additionally authorize the committee to include family physicians.
(3) Existing law, the Sexual Health Education Accountability Act, requires a sexual health education program to meet specified requirements, including that information be medically accurate, current, and objective. For purposes of this act, “medically accurate” means, in part, verified or supported by research conducted in compliance with scientific methods and published in peer review journals, and recognized as accurate and objective by professional organizations and agencies with expertise in the relevant field, including the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
This bill would modify the term “medically accurate” to additionally reference the American Academy of Family Physicians as a professional organization with the requisite experience.
(4) Existing law precludes an infant under one month of age to be employed on a motion picture set or location unless a physician and surgeon who is certified in pediatrics by a specialty board provides written certification concerning the infant, including that the infant was carried to full term.
This bill would additionally authorize the prescribed certification to be made by a physician and surgeon who is certified in family medicine by a specialty board.
(5) Existing law, the Reproductive Rights Law Enforcement Act, requires the Attorney General to carry out certain functions relating to anti-reproductive-rights crimes in consultation with, among others, subject matter experts, and to convene an advisory committee that consists of members of the organizations identified as subject matter experts.
This bill would include the American Academy of Family Physicians as subject matter experts for purposes of the act.
(6) Existing law, the Song-Brown Health Care Workforce Training Act, defines a “family physician” as a primary care physician who renders continued comprehensive and preventative health care services to families and who has received specialized training in an approved family medicine residency for 3 years after graduation from an accredited medical school. Existing law generally refers to a physician and surgeon who specializes in family medicine as a family practice physician and surgeon.
This bill would expand the definition of “family physician” for purposes of the act to mean a primary care physician and surgeon who renders continued comprehensive and preventative health care services to individuals and families, and who has received the specialized training described above. The bill would apply the “family physician” definition to various provisions of law. The bill would refer to an individual who practices family medicine as a family physician and surgeon, and would make technical, conforming, and nonsubstantive changes.
(7) This bill would incorporate additional changes to Section 1308.8 of the Labor Code proposed by AB 267 to be operative only if this bill and AB 267 are enacted and this bill is enacted last.