CALIFORNIA: BILL TO REQUIRE DIRECT ACCESS TO OB/GYNS
A bill (AB 1354) that would require managed care plans toThis is part of the California Healthline Daily Edition, a summary of health policy coverage from major news organizations. Sign up for an email subscription.
allow women to bypass their primary physicians and go directly to
a plan-member OB/GYN was sent to Gov. Pete Wilson's (R) desk late
last week. The bill would allow "health plans to establish rules
governing protocols and the participation of OB/GYNs," and enable
individual plans to require communication between a patient's
OB/GYN and her primary care physician in specific instances.
State Assemblyman Brett Granlund (R), co-author of the bill, said
he feels that it is "good policy for women to be able to discuss
very personal health issues with the doctor they feel most
comfortable with." Although the bill was passed by a wide margin
in both houses, it may encounter problems in the governor's
office, serving as "a litmus test that predicts the fate of the
other [managed care] reform bills" pending in the state
(California Association of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, Inc.
release, 7/17). (Click here for American Health Line's complete
listing of states with direct OB/GYN access bills).