On Saturday, Gov. Jerry Brown (D) signed into law several health-related bills, including legislation affecting mental health care and women's health issues, the Los Angeles Times reports (McGreevy/Bloomekatz, Los Angeles Times, 9/24).
Brown Signs Abortion Care Bill
Brown signed a bill (SB 623) -- by Sen. Christine Kehoe (D-San Diego) -- that extends until Jan. 1, 2014, a pilot program to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of allowing nurse practitioners, physician assistants and midwives to provide non-surgical abortions (Siders, "Capitol Alert," Sacramento Bee, 9/22).
Brown Signs Bill Extending Laura's Law
In addition, Brown signed a bill (AB 1569) -- by Assembly member Mike Allen (D-Santa Rosa) -- that extends Laura's Law until 2017 (Lagos, San Francisco Chronicle, 9/23).
The 2002 law allows courts to mandate treatment for residents with severe mental health conditions and a history of violence or hospitalization (California Healthline, 8/28).
Brown Signs Birth Control Bill
Brown also signed a bill (AB 2348) -- by Assembly member Holly Mitchell (D-Los Angeles) -- that allows registered nurses to distribute and administer birth control according to a standard procedure outlined by a physician. Previously, a physician's approval was needed for prescribing.
The new law takes effect Jan. 1 (Abdollah, "KPCC News," KPCC, 9/22).
Brown Signs Breast Tissue Screening Bill
Brown also signed a bill (SB 1538) -- by Sen. Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) -- that requires that women who receive mammograms be informed if they have dense breast tissue.
The law, effective April 1, 2013, also requires that those women be informed about how the density of their breast tissue can affect mammogram results and cancer risk (Los Angeles Times, 9/23).
Brown Vetoes Spinal-Cord Research Bill
Meanwhile, Brown vetoed a bill (AB 1657) -- by Assembly member Bob Wieckowski (D-Fremont) -- that would have added a $1 fee to the cost of a moving traffic violation to fund spinal cord injury research (Richman, San Jose Mercury News, 9/17).