Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 1440. Section 1440.
As used in this chapter the term “board” means the board of supervisors of a county.
ARTICLE 1. Administration [1440. - 1462.]
Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC 1.
in effectCal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 1441. Section 1441.
The board of supervisors in each county may establish and maintain a county hospital, prescribe rules for the government and management thereof, appoint a county physician and other necessary officers and employees thereof, who shall hold office during the pleasure of the board and authorize said hospital to be a member of and maintain membership in any local, state or national group or association organized and operated for the promotion of the public health and welfare or the advancement of the efficiency of hospital administration and in connection therewith to use tax funds for the payment of dues and fees.
Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 1441.5. Section 1441.5.
(a)
A member of a county hospital’s medical or allied health professional staff who is an officer of the board of supervisors, or of a board or commission appointed by the board of supervisors for the operation of a county hospital shall not be deemed to be “financially interested,” for purposes of Section 1090 of the Government Code, in any of the contracts set forth in subdivision (b) made by any county body or board of which the officer is a member if all of the following conditions are satisfied:
(1)
The officer abstains from any participation in the making of the contract.
(2)
The officer’s relationship to the contract is disclosed to the body or board and noted in its official records.
(3)
If the requirements of paragraphs (1) and (2) are satisfied, the body or board does both of the following, without any participation by the officer:
(A)
Finds that the contract is fair to the county hospital and in its best interest.
(B)
Authorizes the contract in good faith.
(b)
Subdivision (a) shall apply to the following contracts:
(1)
A contract between the county hospital and the officer for the officer to provide professional services to the hospital’s patients, employees, or medical staff members and their respective dependents, provided that similar contracts exist with other staff members and the amounts payable under the contract are no greater than the amounts payable under similar contracts covering the same or similar services.
(2)
A contract to provide services to covered persons between the county hospital and any insurance company, health care service plan, employer, or other entity which provides health care coverage, and which also has a contract with the officer to provide professional services to its covered persons.
(3)
A contract in which the county hospital and the officer are both parties if other members of the county hospital’s medical or allied health professional staff are also parties, directly or through their professional corporations or other practice entities, provided the officer is offered terms no more favorable than those offered any other party who is a member of the county hospital’s medical or allied health professional staff.
(c)
This section does not permit an otherwise prohibited individual to be a member of the board of supervisors or any committee or commission thereof. Nothing in this section shall authorize a contract that would otherwise be prohibited by Section 2400 of the Business and Professions Code.
(d)
For purposes of this section, a contract entered into by a professional corporation or other practice entity in which the officer has an interest shall be deemed the same as a contract entered into by the officer directly.
Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 1442.5. Section 1442.5.
(a)
Prior to (1) closing , (2) eliminating or reducing the level of medical services provided by, or (3) the leasing, selling, or transfer of management of, a county facility, the board shall provide public notice, including notice posted at the entrance to all county health care facilities, of public hearings to be held by the board prior to its decision to proceed. The notice shall be posted not less than 14 days prior to the public hearings. The notice shall contain a list of the proposed reductions or changes, by facility and service. The notice shall include the amount and type of each proposed change, the expected savings, and the number of persons affected.
(b)
Notwithstanding the board’s closing of, the elimination of or reduction in the level of services provided by, or the leasing, selling, or transfer of management of, a county facility subsequent to January 1, 1975, the county shall fulfill its duty to provide care to all indigent people, either directly through county facilities or indirectly through alternative means.
(1)
Where the county duty is fulfilled by a contractual arrangement with a private facility or individual, the facility or individual shall assume the county’s full obligation to provide care to those who cannot afford it, and make their services available to Medi-Cal and Medicare recipients.
(2)
Where the county duty is fulfilled by alternative means, the facility or individual providing services shall be in compliance with Sections 441.18 and 1277.
(3)
The board shall designate an agency to provide a 24-hour information service that can give eligible people immediate information on the available services and access to them, and an agency to receive and respond to complaints from people eligible for services under this chapter. The designated agency may be the agency that operates the facility. This subdivision applies only in instances in which there is (1) a closing of, (2) an elimination or reduction in the level of services provided by, or (3) the leasing, selling, or transfer of, a county facility.
(4)
The board shall arrange for all facilities or individuals contracting to provide services to indigent people to be listed in the local telephone directory under county listings, and shall specify therein that the facilities or individuals fulfill the obligations of county facilities.
(5)
Section 25371 of the Government Code does not relieve the county of the obligation to comply with this section.
Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 1443. Section 1443.
The board may provide for transporting the needy sick to and from hospitals to which they may be sent by authority of the board, and may provide for transporting indigents to other counties or states when such indigents will thereby cease to become public charges, or when friends or relatives of such indigents agree to assume the cost and expense of the care and maintenance of such indigents, or when such indigents are legally public charges in the places to which they are so transported.
Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 1444. Section 1444.
The board of supervisors in each county or city and county, having a population of one million or more, may purchase ambulances, establish and maintain an ambulance service, and prescribe rules for the government and management thereof. In any county where such a service has been established, any person who has been injured in an accident or is ill and in need of immediate transportation to a hospital may be taken to any available hospital. If he is indigent and unable to pay for the service, the cost shall be a proper charge against the county. If he is not indigent, he shall reimburse the county for the cost of transportation, which shall be in accordance with a schedule to be adopted by the board, and in no case less than the actual cost.
Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 1444.6. Section 1444.6.
If a county hospital requests an ambulance to transfer a mental health patient who is unstable and has a history of being assaultive to another facility, notwithstanding any other provision of law, the director of the hospital or a designee shall inform the ambulance personnel of the instability and potential assaultiveness of the mental health patient. The county hospital shall establish procedures as are necessary to assure that the notification required by this section is given in appropriate cases and to assure that these notifications are documented.
Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 1445. Section 1445.
Under such limitations and restrictions as are prescribed by law, and in addition to jurisdiction and powers otherwise conferred, the boards of supervisors in each county may provide for the care and maintenance of the indigent sick or dependent poor of the county, and may provide medical and dental care and health services and supplies to persons in need thereof who are unable to provide the same for themselves, and for these purposes may levy the necessary taxes. Each county may, insofar as it is able to do so, provide the means to meet promptly and adequately the health needs of the indigent sick, the aged, and the poor, for the better prevention of serious illness and incapacity, to the end that such persons will not become public charges at the greater expense of those resources set aside for the public health and welfare.
Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 1446. Section 1446.
Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, a person, in order to be eligible for care, shall be a resident of the state and county wherein care is furnished as defined in Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 17100) of Part 5 of Division 9 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.
Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 1447. Section 1447.
Notwithstanding any other provisions of the Welfare and Institutions Code, the county which is responsible for the payment of public assistance to any person or group of persons under Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 11200), Chapter 3 (commencing with Section 12000), or Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 12500) of Part 3 of Division 9 of that code, and the needy relative in the case of aid to needy children, shall provide the necessary hospital or medical care, or both, if otherwise qualified for that care. If a recipient of public assistance moves from one county to another county within this state to make his or her home, the county to which the recipient removes shall become responsible for providing medical or hospital care or both upon notification by the first county that the recipient has moved to the second county for the purpose of making his or her home in that county, provided that the recipient is otherwise qualified for the care, except that he or she need not meet the residence qualifications set forth in Section 17105 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.
Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 1451. Section 1451.
(a)
Except as otherwise provided in this section, the board shall not let the care, maintenance, or attendance of the indigent sick or dependent poor by contract to any person.
(b)
The board may secure for the indigent sick, and other persons admissible to the county hospital, at an agreed rate, hospital service, or any portion thereof, from any public or private hospital, clinic, rest home, sanitarium, or other suitable facility, or from any corporation formed under Section 9201 of the Corporations Code or under Chapter 11A (commencing with Section 11491) of Part 2of Division 2 of the Insurance Code that operates in the state, in the following cases:
(1)
Cases of unusual difficulty.
(2)
Cases that require treatment, or hospital services, or the use of facilities not immediately available in the county hospital.
(3)
Cases requiring emergency care or continued treatment after the emergency has ceased to exist.
(c)
As used in this section, “hospital service” includes medical, surgical, radiological, laboratory, nursing service, convalescent care, and the furnishing of the necessary professional personnel, equipment, and facilities to manage the needs of patients on a continuing basis in accordance with accepted medical standards, with a staff of professional nursing personnel who are assigned and available under a clear and definite responsibility to the institution rendering the service for the provision of services to the patients, and any other care, service, or supplies that may be necessary for the treatment of the sick or injured.
(d)
The county may also contract with licensed boarding homes for 24-hour care for dependent children under the age of 18 years when suitable facilities are not otherwise available in any institution or establishment maintained and operated by the county.
(e)
The county may also contract for medical treatment of persons admissible to the county hospital with any licensed physician and surgeon, or a corporation operating under Section 9201 of the Corporations Code.
(f)
The county may also contract for health care services when the board determines that the hospital services or any portion thereof rendered by the county hospital should be coordinated with those provided by any other source.
Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 1451.5. Section 1451.5.
The board may authorize payment for care provided, on or after January 1, 1962, to an indigent resident of the county in a hospital or medical facility located in another state, where that care is provided in an emergency or can be secured at a lesser expense than would be the case were the person to be transported to a comparable facility in this State.
Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 1452. Section 1452.
The board of supervisors of counties of the 20th class and 40th to 58th class, inclusive, in connection with the administration of a county hospital may establish in the county treasury a special fund to be known as the “Hospital Trust Fund,” into which may be placed deposits made voluntarily by patients entering such hospital.
At the time of any patient’s dismissal from a county hospital, there shall be refunded to him, upon the order of the business manager or other person designated by the board of supervisors, such portion of the deposit made voluntarily by the patient at the time of his entrance into the hospital as was unneeded for his care while confined therein. The portion earned by the hospital shall be transferred to the hospital fund in the county treasury.
Upon presentation of an order for refund under this section, the county auditor shall draw his warrant on the Hospital Trust Fund, and the county treasurer shall pay the amount due thereon.
If no refund is made within 30 days after the patient’s discharge, the patient may file a claim against the county pursuant to Article 1 of Chapter 4 of Division 3 of Title 3 of the Government Code.
Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 1453. Section 1453.
The board of supervisors of any county in connection with the administration of any county hospital may establish in the county treasury a special fund to be known as the “patients’ personal deposit fund.” When such fund is established, any patient in the hospital may request the superintendent thereof to deposit in the fund any moneys belonging to the patient. Upon any such request by any patient any moneys belonging to the patient shall be deposited in the name of that patient in the patients’ personal deposit fund, except that if a guardian or conservator of the estate is appointed for the patient, then the guardian or conservator shall have the right to demand and receive such moneys or to withdraw either in whole or in part the moneys theretofore deposited in the fund in the name of the patient. Any of the funds belonging to a patient deposited in the patients’ personal deposit fund may be used for the purchase of personal incidentals for the patient or otherwise used for the personal needs and benefits of the patient upon his request. At the time of the discharge from the hospital of any patient there shall be refunded to him upon the order of the superintendent the balance of any moneys standing to the credit of the patient in the fund.
Prior to the time of the discharge of any patient, upon the demand of the patient there shall be refunded to him upon the order of the superintendent the whole or any portion of the balance of any moneys standing to the credit of the patient in the fund. Upon such demand of the patient, or upon the discharge of the patient from the hospital, or upon the demand of the guardian or conservator of the estate of the patient, the superintendent shall order the refund to the patient or the payment to such guardian or conservator as hereinbefore provided.
Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 1454. Section 1454.
In any county where a county hospital has been established, any expectant mother who is unable to pay for her necessary care shall be admitted to the county hospital, and the cost of her maintenance and care shall be a proper charge against and shall be paid by the county of her residence.
Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 1455. Section 1455.
The board shall appoint a suitable graduate, or graduates, in medicine to attend such indigent sick or dependent poor in the county hospitals and almshouses.
Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 1456. Section 1456.
(a)
In the interest of public health and safety the board of supervisors of any county which maintains a county hospital may by ordinance establish a hospital and safety commission. The commission shall be advisory to the board of supervisors.
(b)
The commission shall exercise such powers and perform such duties relating to the administration of the county hospital as shall be prescribed by the ordinance. The commission shall further exercise such powers and perform such duties as shall be prescribed by the ordinance and which may include the following:
1.
To promote safety among all county officers and employees and to develop a program of accident prevention.
2.
To investigate all industrial, vehicular and all other accidents to county personnel and county equipment, including privately owned equipment operated by county personnel under contract with the county.
3.
To hold hearings in the course of such investigation and to report to the board of supervisors upon all accidents reported to and investigated by the commission.
4.
To recommend to the board of supervisors safety rules and regulations promoting the health and safety of all county officers and employees and agents in the prosecution of their office or employment and their use of all equipment in the course of their duties as such officers, employees, and agents.
(c)
The commission shall be appointed by the board of supervisors. No person holding any elective office shall be appointed to the commission. Members of the commission shall be residents of the county. Members shall be appointed in the manner prescribed by the ordinance and shall serve for such term as is prescribed therein; subject, however, to the power of the board of supervisors to remove any member of the commission at any time by three-fifths vote of the board.
(d)
The members of the commission shall serve with or without compensation as prescribed by the ordinance.
(e)
Members of the commission may, when and if so provided in the ordinance, receive actual and necessary expenses in traveling from their place of residence to the place of meeting of the commission, and return, and such expenses shall be a proper charge upon the county; provided, however, that in no event shall any charge be made upon the county for any expense incurred by any member for any meal eaten at any meeting of the commission.
(f)
Meetings of the commission shall be held in accord with the provisions of Chapter 9 (commencing with Section 54950) of Part 1 of Division 2 of Title 5 of the Government Code.
(g)
The provisions of Section 54954 of the Government Code notwithstanding, any meeting of the commission shall be held only in a public building of the county and within the county in which such commission is established.
(h)
The ordinance establishing the commission shall specifically prescribe the following:
(1)
The name of the commission;
(2)
The functions and duties thereof;
(3)
Number of members, method of appointment and term of members;
(4)
A statement of whether or not payment of compensation to members of the commission is authorized and, if authorized, a statement of the amount of such compensation and the maximum number of meetings of the commission in any one calendar month for which such compensation may be paid;
(5)
A statement of whether or not traveling expenses are authorized and, if authorized, a statement of the rate which will be allowed for mileage.
(6)
Subject to the limitations prescribed by this section, such ordinance may contain such additional provisions as the board of supervisors may deem expedient for the proper administration of the affairs of the commission.
(i)
Any ordinance of any county establishing a hospital or a safety commission enacted prior to the effective date of this section is hereby validated, provided that the provisions of the ordinance substantially comply with the limitations and authorizations set forth in this section; provided expressly, however, that any such hospital or safety commission created by ordinance enacted prior to the effective date of this section shall cease to exist at the close of the 60th day following the effective date of this section, and no hospital or safety commission established by any such ordinance, or established in any other manner whatever, shall continue to exist or function thereafter in any county unless and until such hospital or safety commission is established by ordinance under the provisions of this section.
Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 1457. Section 1457.
(a)
The State Department of Health Services, with the advice of the State Department of Social Services, shall prescribe the records to be kept by county hospitals of persons received into or discharged from these institutions, including, but not limited to, records for the admission and processing of county hospital patients.
(b)
The records shall be preserved and maintained pursuant to regulations adopted by the department, or at the request of the county physician or other person in charge of the county hospital, the board of supervisors of the county may authorize the
destruction of any record, paper, or document prescribed by the department
following compliance with the conditions prescribed in Section 26205 of the Government Code.
(c)
(1)
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, those records of a hospital, or any other county medical facility, subject to this chapter that reveal the rates of payment for health care services rendered by or purchased by the hospital or other medical facility, or the deliberative processes, discussions, communications, or any other portion or aspect of the negotiations leading to those payment rates, shall not be considered public records subject to disclosure pursuant to the California Public Records Act (Division 10 (commencing with Section 7920.000) of Title 1 of the Government Code), nor shall they be subject to public disclosure pursuant to any other law requiring the disclosure of records, for a
period of three years following execution of a related contract establishing rates of payment.
(2)
Notwithstanding paragraph (1), public disclosure or nondisclosure of records relating to any matters or activities connected with selective provider contracts entered into pursuant to Article 2.6 (commencing with Section 14081) of Chapter 7 of Part 3 of Division 9 of the Welfare and Institutions Code shall be determined pursuant to Article 2.6 (commencing with Section 14081) of Chapter 7 of Part 3 of Division 9 of the Welfare and Institutions Code and Section 7926.220 of the Government Code, and other applicable provisions of Division 10 (commencing with Section 7920.000) of Title 1 of the Government Code.
Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 1458. Section 1458.
The board may provide a farm in connection with the county hospital or almshouse and may make regulations for working the same.
Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 1459. Section 1459.
No county hospital which permits sterilization operations for contraceptive purposes to be performed therein, nor the medical staff of such hospital, shall require the individual upon whom such a sterilization operation is to be performed to meet any special nonmedical qualifications, which are not imposed on individuals seeking other types of operations in the hospital. Such prohibited nonmedical qualifications shall include, but not be limited to, age, marital status, and number of natural children.
Nothing in this section shall prohibit requirements relating to the physical or mental condition of the individual or affect the right of the attending physician to counsel or advise his patient as to whether or not sterilization is appropriate. This section shall not affect existing law with respect to individuals below the age of majority.
Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 1460. Section 1460.
(a)
Upon a determination and establishment of the need to recruit and retain registered nurses, licensed vocational nurses, X-ray technicians, laboratory technologists, and other health care professionals, the board of supervisors of a county may establish nursing or health care professional scholarships. For purposes of this section, “health care professional” shall not include a physician and surgeon.
(b)
The board of supervisors, or a designee of the board, shall administer the scholarship program for students participating in a nurse or health care professional training program and shall adopt such rules and regulations as are reasonably necessary to carry out the provisions of this section.
(c)
Scholarships made pursuant to this section, shall be repayable to the board of supervisors or canceled under the following conditions:
(1)
A graduate nurse or health care professional who maintains employment in a county-operated health facility for less than one year after becoming licensed shall repay the scholarship in addition to accrued interest charges. The scholarships shall be repayable to the board of supervisors under the terms specified in the agreement.
(2)
The total amount of the scholarship and all accrued interest shall be canceled for a graduate nurse or graduate health care professional who maintains employment in a county-operated facility for more than a year from the date of licensure and may be canceled under any other conditions established by rules and regulations adopted by the board of supervisors. For the purposes of this section, one year of employment in a county-operated health facility shall be deemed to have lapsed one year from the date the licensed nurse or health care professional presents proof, in writing, to the board of supervisors, or designee of the board, that he or she is licensed and is employed in a county-operated health facility.
(d)
In addition to the principal amount of the scholarship, interest shall accrue on the principal at a rate to be established by the board of supervisors. Interest shall accrue from the date the scholarship is made until it is repaid unless the scholarship is canceled pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (c).
Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 1461. Section 1461.
Notwithstanding any other provisions of law, the board of directors of any hospital subject to this chapter may order that any hearings on the reports of hospital medical audit or quality assurance committees be held in closed session. An applicant or medical staff member whose staff privileges are the direct subject of a hearing may request a public hearing. Deliberations of the board of directors in connection with matters pertaining to these hearings may be held in closed session.
Cal. Health and Safety Code - HSC § 1462. Section 1462.
(a)
Except as provided in this section or Section 1461, all of the sessions of the board of directors of any hospital subject to this chapter, whether regular or special, shall be open to the public.
(b)
The board of directors may order that a meeting held solely for the purpose of discussion or deliberation, or both, of reports involving hospital trade secrets to be held in closed session. Except as provided in this subdivision, the closed session shall meet all applicable requirements of Chapter 9 (commencing with Section 54950) of Division 2 of Title 5 of the Government Code.
(c)
“Hospital trade secrets,” as used in this section, means a “trade secret,” as defined in subdivision (d) of Section 3426.1 of the Civil Code, and which meets both of the following:
(1)
Is necessary to initiate a new hospital service or program or add a hospital facility.
(2)
Would, if prematurely disclosed, create a substantial probability of depriving the hospital of substantial economic benefit.
(d)
The exemption provided in subdivision (b) to the general open meeting requirements for a meeting of the board of directors, shall not apply to a meeting where there is action taken, as defined in Section 54952.6 of the Government Code.
(e)
Nothing in this section shall be construed to permit the board of directors to order a closed meeting for the purposes of discussing or deliberating, or to permit the discussion or deliberation in any closed meeting of, any proposals regarding:
(1)
The sale, conversion, contract for management, or leasing of any county hospital or the assets thereof, to any for-profit or not-for-profit entity, agency, association, organization, governmental body, person, partnership, corporation, or other district.
(2)
The conversion of any county hospital to any other form of ownership by the county.
(3)
The dissolution of the county hospital.
Source: CA Legislative Counsel Bulk DataURL: https://downloads.leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/pubinfo_2025.zipFetched: 6/27/2026