California Health and Safety Code

§ 1259

HSC § 1259 Effective Jan 1, 2018Div. 2 · Ch. 2 · Art. 1

Statute text

(a)(1) The Legislature finds and declares that California is becoming a land of people whose languages and cultures give the state a global quality. The Legislature further finds and declares that access to basic health care services is the right of every resident of the state, and that access to information regarding basic health care services is an essential element of that right.

(2)Therefore, it is the intent of the Legislature that when language or communication barriers exist between patients and the staff of any general acute care hospital, arrangements shall be made for interpreters or bilingual professional staff to ensure adequate and speedy communication between patients and staff.

(b)As used in this section:

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Legislative history

Amended by Stats. 2017, Ch. 561, Sec. 102. (AB 1516) Effective January 1, 2018.