(1) Existing law establishes the State Department of Public Health to, among other things, implement and administer various programs relating to public health. Existing law, the Valley Fever Education, Early Diagnosis, and Treatment Act, states the intent of the Legislature to raise awareness of the symptoms, tests, and treatments for valley fever among the general public, primary health care providers, and health care providers who care for persons at higher risk for getting valley fever.
This bill, the Valley Fever Screening and Prevention Act of 2025, would require the department to annually analyze and identify regions with high rates of valley fever using public health surveillance data. The bill would require the department to publish its first list of high-incidence regions for valley fever on or before March 1, 2027. The bill would require the department to provide county health departments in high-incidence regions with detailed infection data and standardized screening protocols for valley fever. The bill would require the department, on or before January 1, 2030, and every 2 years thereafter, to evaluate the effectiveness of the valley fever screening and prevention program and report its findings to the Legislature.
This bill would require county health departments in high-incidence regions to coordinate with local health officers to ensure compliance with screening protocols for valley fever. The bill would require counties to conduct outreach to health care providers and the general public to raise awareness of valley fever risks, symptoms, and prevention strategies. The bill would require counties to annually report compliance data to the department, as specified. By imposing duties on counties, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
(2) Existing law provides for the licensure and regulation of health facilities and clinics by the State Department of Public Health. A violation of these provisions is a crime.
This bill, commencing January 1, 2028, would require an adult patient receiving primary care services in a facility, clinic, unlicensed clinic, center, office, or other setting, and in a high-incidence region for valley fever, to be offered a valley fever screening test, as specified. The bill would prohibit a health care provider who fails to comply with these provisions from being subject to any disciplinary action related to their licensure or certification, or to any civil or criminal liability for that failure.
By expanding the scope of a crime applicable to the health care settings described above, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
(3) Existing law establishes the Medi-Cal program, which is administered by the State Department of Health Care Services and under which qualified low-income individuals receive health care services. Existing law, the Knox-Keene Health Care Service Plan Act of 1975, provides for the licensure and regulation of health care service plans by the Department of Managed Health Care, and makes a willful violation of the act a crime. Existing law provides for the regulation of health insurers by the Department of Insurance.
This bill would require a health care service plan contract or health insurance policy, except as specified, that is issued, amended, delivered, or renewed on or after June 1, 2027, to cover, without cost sharing, valley fever screening tests in high-incidence regions for valley fever, as identified by the State Department of Public Health. Because a violation of this requirement relative to health care service plans would be a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
The bill would add the aforementioned screening tests as a Medi-Cal covered benefit, subject to any necessary federal approvals and federal financial participation, as specified.
(4) 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 with regard to certain mandates no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.
With regard to any other mandates, this bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs so mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.

Statutes affected:
SB 297: 122475 HSC
02/10/25 - Introduced: 122475 HSC