SB 1408: Tissue donation.

(1)Existing law prohibits the transfer of any tissues, as defined, into the body of another person by means of transplantation, unless the donor of the tissues has been screened and found nonreactive for evidence of infection with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), agents of viral hepatitis (HBV and HCV), human T lymphotropic virus (HTLV), and syphilis, except as provided. Existing law requires that all donors of sperm be screened and found nonreactive under the above provisions, except as provided. Existing law authorizes the transplantation of tissue from a donor who has not been tested for specified infectious diseases or, with the exception of HIV and HTLV, has been found reactive, if specified conditions are satisfied.

This bill would delete the exception of HIV from this provision. The bill would require a physician and surgeon performing the transplantation of an organ from an HIV-reactive donor to ensure that the recipient is also HIV reactive and complying with federal law, as specified.

(2)Under existing law, it is a felony for a person to donate blood, body organs or other tissue, or semen to a medical center or semen bank who knows that he or she has acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) except if the person is a sperm donor who has been screened and found nonreactive under the above provisions. Under existing law, a person afflicted with any contagious, infectious, or communicable disease who willfully exposes himself or herself to another person, and any person who willfully exposes another person afflicted with the disease to someone else, is guilty of a misdemeanor, except as provided.

This bill would exempt those sperm donors and organ donors from those criminal provisions.

(3)Existing law authorizes the Medical Board of California and the California Board of Podiatric Medicine to take disciplinary action against a physician, surgeon, and other licensed or regulated individual who knowingly fails to protect patients by failing to follow infection control guidelines and risks transmission of blood-borne infectious diseases, as specified.

This bill would exempt the performance of an organ transplant, as authorized by this bill, from disciplinary action.

This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.