​This All Facilities Letter serves as notification of changes to the Health & Safety Code (HSC) which will be effective January 1, 2014. Recently enacted legislation, AB 297, amended Section 1204.5 of the HSC to allow Primary Care Clinics (PCCs) to submit verification of certification from the Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care (AAAHC) or any other accrediting organization recognized by the department for entry into the Electronic Licensing Management System (ELMS) for purposes of data collection and extraction for licensing and certification fee calculations.

Previously, HSC Section 1204.5 only specifically referenced verification of a PCCs certification of accreditation by The Joint Commission (TJC) (formerly known as the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organization (JCAHO)) for entry into ELMS for data collection and fee calculations. Because the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) recognizes accrediting organizations approved by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), this bill simply codifies the existing practice of entering the applicable accrediting agencies’ information in ELMS when this information is provided by the PCC.

Pursuant to HSC Section 1228 (c)(2), PCCs that receive accreditation from an accrediting organization recognized by the department are exempt from state periodic licensing surveys. These PCCs are encouraged to submit verification of accreditation to their local District Office (DO) for entry into the ELMS system. For your convenience the list of all District Office addresses and contact information can be found using the following link:

District Office Contact

The information in this AFL is a brief summary of AB 297’s changes to the HSC. Facilities are responsible for following all applicable laws. CDPH’s failure to expressly notify facilities of legislative changes does not relieve facilities of their responsibility for following all laws and for being aware of all legislative changes. Facilities should refer to the full text of HSC Section 1204.5 to ensure compliance.

Sincerely,

Original signed by Debby Rogers

Debby Rogers, RN, MS, FAEN
Deputy Director