California Business and Professions Code

§ 2453

BPC § 2453 Effective Jan 1, 1993Div. 2 · Ch. 5 · Art. 21

Statute text

(a)It is the policy of this state that holders of M.D. degrees and D.O. degrees shall be accorded equal professional status and privileges as licensed physicians and surgeons.

(b)Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no health facility subject to licensure under Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 1250) of Division 2 of the Health and Safety Code, no health care service plan, nonprofit hospital service plan, policy of disability insurance, self-insured employer welfare benefit plan, and no agency of the state or of any city, county, city and county, district, or other political subdivision of the state shall discriminate with respect to employment, staff privileges, or the provision of, or contracts for, professional services against a licensed physician and surgeon on the basis of whether the physician and surgeon holds an M.D. or D.O. degree. This section shall not be construed to require a disability insurer health care service plan or hospital service plan to employ, offer staff privileges, or contract for professional services with a class of physician who holds an M.D. or D.O. degree. However, this subdivision shall not prohibit a school of allopathic medicine or a school of osteopathic medicine from employing a physician and surgeon as an instructor on the basis of whether the physician and surgeon holds an M.D. or D.O. degree, where the subject matter to be taught specifically requires allopathic or osteopathic training and experience.

(c)Whenever the health facility staffing requirements for staff or department privileges mandate that the physician who has been granted privileges be certified or eligible for certification by an appropriate American medical board, that position must be made available on an equal basis to an osteopathic physician who is certified or eligible for certification by the appropriate American osteopathic board.

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Legislative history

Amended by Stats. 1992, Ch. 619, Sec. 1. Effective January 1, 1993.