(1) Existing law provides for the licensure and regulation of various healing arts professions by various boards within the Department of Consumer Affairs. A violation of specified provisions is a crime. Existing law defines telemedicine, for the purpose of its regulation, to mean the practice of health care delivery, diagnosis, consultation, treatment, transfer of medical data, and education using interactive audio, video, or data communications. Existing law requires a health care practitioner, as defined, to obtain verbal and written informed consent from the patient or the patient's legal representative before telemedicine is delivered. Existing law also imposes various requirements with regard to the provision of telemedicine by health care service plans, health insurers, or under the Medi-Cal program, including a prohibition on requiring face-to-face contact between a health care provider and a patient for services appropriately provided through telemedicine, subject to certain contracts or policies. Existing federal regulations, for the purposes of participation in the Medicare and Medicaid programs, authorize the governing body of a hospital whose patients are receiving telemedicine services to grant privileges based on its medical staff recommendations that rely on information provided by the distant-site hospital. Existing state regulations require medical staff, appointed by the governing body of a hospital, to adopt procedures for the evaluation of staff applications for credentials and privileges. Existing law provides that health care service plans and health insurers shall not be required to pay for consultations provided by telephone or facsimile machines. Existing law provides that a willful violation of the provisions governing health care service plans is a crime.
California AB 415 (20112012) — Healing arts: telehealth.
(1) Existing law provides for the licensure and regulation of various healing arts professions by various boards within the Department of Consumer Affairs. A violation of specified provisions is a crime. Existing law defines telemedicine, for the purpose of its regulation, to mean the practice of health care delivery, diagnosis, consultation, treatment, transfer of medical data, and education using interactive audio, video, or data communications. Existing law requires a health care practitioner, as defined, to obtain verbal and written informed consent from the patient or the patient's legal representative before telemedicine is delivered. Existing law also imposes various requirements with regard to the provision of telemedicine by health care service plans, health insurers, or under the Medi-Cal program, including a prohibition on requiring face-to-face contact between a health care provider and a patient for services appropriately provided through telemedicine, subject to certain contracts or policies. Existing federal regulations, for the purposes of participation in the Medicare and Medicaid programs, authorize the governing body of a hospital whose patients are receiving telemedicine services to grant privileges based on its medical staff recommendations that rely on information provided by the distant-site hospital. Existing state regulations require medical staff, appointed by the governing body of a hospital, to adopt procedures for the evaluation of staff applications for credentials and privileges. Existing law provides that health care service plans and health insurers shall not be required to pay for consultations provided by telephone or facsimile machines. Existing law provides that a willful violation of the provisions governing health care service plans is a crime.
Version chain
The bill's text revisions, in order — the diff chain from filing to enrollment.
The legislative action history — every referral, reading, and vote.
2011-02-14 Read first time. To print. reading-1
2011-02-15 From printer. May be heard in committee March 17.
2011-03-31 Referred to Com. on HEALTH. referral-committee
2011-03-31 From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to Com. on HEALTH. Read second time and amended. reading-2, amendment-introduction, reading-1, amendment-passage
2011-04-04 Re-referred to Com. on HEALTH. referral-committee
2011-04-25 From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to Com. on HEALTH. Read second time and amended. reading-2, amendment-introduction, reading-1, amendment-passage
2011-04-26 Re-referred to Com. on HEALTH. referral-committee
2011-05-09 From committee: Do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 16. Noes 0.) (May 3). amendment-passage, committee-passage, committee-passage-favorable
2011-05-10 Read second time and amended. reading-2, reading-1, amendment-passage
2011-05-11 Re-referred to Com. on APPR. referral-committee
2011-05-18 In committee: Set, first hearing. Referred to APPR. suspense file. referral-committee
2011-05-27 From committee: Do pass as amended. (Ayes 17. Noes 0.) (May 27). amendment-passage, committee-passage, committee-passage-favorable
2011-05-27 Read second time and amended. Ordered to second reading. reading-2, reading-1, amendment-passage
2011-05-31 Read second time. Ordered to third reading. reading-2, reading-1
2011-06-01 Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Senate. (Ayes 76. Noes 0. Page 1723.) reading-3, reading-1, passage
2011-06-01 In Senate. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment. reading-1
2011-06-08 Referred to Coms. on HEALTH and B., P. & E.D. referral-committee
2011-06-30 From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on B., P. & E.D. (Ayes 8. Noes 0.) (June 29). Re-referred to Com. on B., P. & E.D. referral-committee, committee-passage, committee-passage-favorable
2011-07-06 From committee: Do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 9. Noes 0.) (July 6). amendment-passage, committee-passage, committee-passage-favorable
2011-07-07 Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on APPR. reading-2, reading-1, amendment-passage, referral-committee
2011-08-15 From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to committee. Read second time, amended, and re-referred to Com. on APPR. reading-2, amendment-introduction, reading-1, amendment-passage, referral-committee
2011-08-15 In committee: Referred to APPR. suspense file. referral-committee
2011-08-25 From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 9. Noes 0.) (August 25). committee-passage, committee-passage-favorable
2011-08-29 Read second time. Ordered to third reading. reading-2, reading-1
2011-09-02 Read third time and amended. Ordered to second reading. reading-3, reading-1, amendment-passage
2011-09-06 Read second time. Ordered to third reading. reading-2, reading-1
2011-09-07 Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Assembly. (Ayes 35. Noes 0. Page 2355.). reading-3, reading-1, passage
2011-09-07 In Assembly. Concurrence in Senate amendments pending.
2011-09-08 Senate amendments concurred in. To Engrossing and Enrolling. (Ayes 79. Noes 0. Page 3074.). committee-passage-favorable, amendment-passage
2011-09-22 Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 12:30 p.m.
2011-10-07 Approved by the Governor. executive-signature
2011-10-07 Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 547, Statutes of 2011.
Source
OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot 2026-07-01; origin ocd-bill/e7a8621e-6517-4c15-be9d-5003cdc29f64. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official California legislature records).
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