An act to amend Section 1375.1 of the Health and Safety Code, relating to health care service plans. amend Section 7117 of the Health and Safety Code, relating to human remains.
Summary
SB 344 makes two separate, largely technical changes to the Health and Safety Code. First, it amends the rules governing the scattering of cremated or hydrolyzed human remains at sea by clarifying that scattering is not permitted from a dock attached to the shore, in addition to the existing prohibitions on scattering from a bridge or pier. The bill also retains the existing requirements that remains be removed from their container before scattering and that a verified statement be filed with the local registrar of births and deaths after the disposition.
Second, the bill makes technical, nonsubstantive changes to the Knox-Keene Health Care Service Plan Act provisions governing health care service plans. Those provisions require plans to demonstrate fiscal soundness, maintain adequate protection against insolvency, assume full financial risk on a prospective basis for covered services, and maintain procedures for prompt payment or denial of claims, including telehealth claims. The bill does not appear to change the substantive financial-risk standards, but rather updates the statutory language in that section.
Impact
The bill would amend two sections of the Health and Safety Code. For human remains, it would expand the list of prohibited locations for scattering cremated or hydrolyzed remains at sea by adding docks attached to the shore to the existing ban on bridges and piers, which could affect funeral directors, families, and others handling cremation dispositions, and it may create a new enforceable misdemeanor/crime-related restriction. For health care service plans, it would make technical edits to Knox-Keene Act language without changing the core obligations of licensed plans or the Department of Managed Health Care’s oversight role.
Sentiment
The available voting history suggests the bill was broadly noncontroversial and received strong support, with unanimous or near-unanimous committee and floor votes reflected in the record. The bill also moved through consent-calendar style actions, which typically indicates it was viewed as routine or technical rather than politically divisive. No committee transcript objections are provided, and the overall pattern points to general agreement with the measure’s limited scope.
Contention
The only notable substantive issue apparent from the text is the added prohibition on scattering remains from docks attached to the shore. That change could matter to funeral service providers, marina operators, and families planning ash-scattering ceremonies, though the bill does not include any recorded opposition in the materials provided. The health plan provisions appear to have generated little or no contention because they are described as technical and nonsubstantive, and the voting record shows no recorded dissent.