AB2405: Mental health.

Amended IN Senate June 25, 2026 Amended IN Assembly May 18, 2026 Amended IN Assembly April 16, 2026 Amended IN Assembly March 23, 2026 CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2025–2026 REGULAR SESSION Assembly Bill No. 2405 Introduced by Assembly Member Gipson February 20, 2026 An act to add Article 7.8 4 (commencing with Section 1797.285) 1797.280) to Chapter 4 of Division 2.5 of the Health and Safety Code, and to add Section 5150.3 to the Welfare and Institutions Code, relating to emergency medical services. mental health. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST AB 2405, as amended, Gipson. Emergency Medical Services Act. Mental health. Under existing law, when a person, as a result of a mental disorder, is a danger to others or to themselves, or is gravely disabled, they may, upon probable cause, be taken into custody for a period of up to 72 hours for assessment, evaluation, and crisis intervention, or placement for evaluation and treatment, as specified. Existing law prohibits mental health personnel from instructing a peace officer to take a person to, or keep the person at, a jail, solely because of the unavailability of an acute bed. This bill would require a peace officer who is transporting the above-described person to a designated facility for assessment to transport the person to the closest designated facility, either geographically or by time, to where the peace officer took the person into custody. Existing law, the Emergency Medical Services System and the Prehospital Emergency Medical Care Personnel Act, establishes the Emergency Medical Services Authority. Under existing law, the authority is responsible for the coordination and integration of all state activities concerning emergency medical services. Existing law requires local emergency medical services agencies to establish policies that govern, among other things, the transport and destination of patients within the emergency medical services system. This bill would require a law enforcement agency transporting a person to an emergency department to transport the person to the nearest appropriate emergency department, as defined, except as specified. The bill would require each law enforcement agency to submit a quarterly report to the authority containing specified information regarding transports conducted pursuant to these provisions, including, among other things, the origin location of the transported person. By imposing additional duties on local law enforcement agencies, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would require the authority to publish the reports annually, as specified. The bill would require the authority to exercise regulatory oversight to implement and ensure compliance with these provisions and would authorize the authority to, among other things, conduct audits, as specified. The bill would make related findings and declarations. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above. Digest Key Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: YES Bill Text The people of the State of California do enact as follows: SECTION 1. Article 7.8 (commencing with Section 1797.285) is added to Chapter 4 of Division 2.5 of the Health and Safety Code , to read: 7.8. Emergency Medical Services Act 1797.285. (a) The Legislature finds and declares all of the following: (1) Timely access to emergency medical care is a matter of statewide concern. (2) Currently, emergency medical services (EMS) personnel are required to transport patients to the nearest appropriate receiving facility consistent with established destination protocols. (3) However, law enforcement agencies also frequently transport individuals who are determined to have a behavioral health need but are not subject to uniform statewide medical destination standards. (4) Inconsistent transport practices may result in unsafe delays in care, overcrowding of safety-net hospitals, and inequitable distribution of emergency department utilization. (b) It is the intent of the Legislature to align law enforcement medical transport practices with established EMS destination principles and ensure accountability. 1797.286. For purposes of this chapter, the following definitions apply: (a) “Law enforcement agency” means any city or municipal police department, county sheriff’s department, or other public agency that employs peace officers, as defined in Chapter 4.5 (commencing with Section 830) of Title 3 of Part 2 of the Penal Code. (b) “Nearest appropriate emergency department” means the licensed general acute care hospital emergency department that is closest, geographically or by time, to where the peace officer first assumed custody of the individual for purposes of transport. 1797.287. (a) Any transport by law enforcement to an emergency department for any reason shall be to the nearest appropriate emergency department, pursuant to Section 1797.114, except as provided in subdivision (b). (b) This section does not apply under any of the following circumstances: (1) During the exigent circumstances of a mass casualty incident or a declared local emergency pursuant to Section 8680.9 of the Government Code. (2) When transporting a patient with trauma, ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), stroke, or other conditions subject to established state or local specialty destination protocols, if those protocols apply to transportation conducted by law enforcement. (3) When a receiving hospital has formally declared diversion or is otherwise unavailable to receive patients, and that status is affirmatively communicated to the transporting law enforcement officer by a public safety answering point, emergency medical services provider, or hospital during the time of transport, in which case the individual shall be transported to the next nearest appropriate emergency department consistent with local emergency medical services agency policies. (c) (1) This section does not limit a peace officer’s ability to transport individuals to the appropriate alternative destination site, including sobering centers, detox centers, behavioral health crisis centers, psychiatric stabilization units, freestanding psychiatric hospitals, or designated or contracted psychiatric emergency facilities. (2) In cases where the alternative destination site is unable to accept the individual and the emergency department becomes the chosen destination, the individual shall be transported to the nearest appropriate emergency department to where the peace officer first assumed custody of the individual for purposes of transport. (d) This section does not limit the authority of local EMS agencies to establish destination policies. (e) This section does not require a peace officer to independently determine hospital diversion status. 1797.288. (a) Each law enforcement agency shall report quarterly to the Emergency Medical Services Authority, in a format prescribed by the authority, all transports conducted pursuant to this chapter. (b) Reported data shall include, but not be limited to, all of the following: (1) Origin location of the transported individual. (2) Destination facility and the date and time of transport. (3) Stated rationale for destination selection. (4) Whether the destination was the nearest appropriate emergency department or an alternative destination site. (5) Demographic information of the transported individual, excluding personally identifiable information. (c) The authority shall publish annual aggregate reports on its internet website. 1797.289. (a) The Emergency Medical Services Authority shall have regulatory oversight authority to implement and ensure compliance with this chapter. (b) The authority may conduct audits, require corrective action plans, and impose administrative civil penalties, not to exceed twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000), per pattern of violation, as defined by regulation. SECTION 1. Article 4 (commencing with Section 1797.280) is added to Chapter 4 of Division 2.5 of the Health and Safety Code, to read: Article 4. Emergency Medical Services Reporting 1797.280. (a) Each law enforcement agency shall report quarterly to the Emergency Medical Services Authority, in a format prescribed by the authority, all transports to an emergency department. (b) Reported data shall include, but not be limited to, all of the following: (1) Origin location of the transported individual. (2) Destination facility and the date and time of transport. (3) Stated rationale for destination selection. (4) Whether the destination was the nearest appropriate emergency department or an alternative destination site. (5) Demographic information of the transported individual, excluding personally identifiable information. (6) Reason the individual was transported to the emergency department, including whether they were being transported for purposes of assessment pursuant to Section 5150 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, or for a nonbehavioral health medical emergency. (c) The authority shall publish annual aggregate reports on its internet website. (d) For purposes of this section, “law enforcement agency” means any city or municipal police department, county sheriff’s department, or other public agency that employs peace officers, as defined in Chapter 4.5 (commencing with Section 830) of Title 3 of Part 2 of the Penal Code. SEC. 2. Section 5150.3 is added to the Welfare and Institutions Code, to read: 5150.3. (a) A peace officer who is transporting a person to a designated facility for assessment pursuant to Section 5150 shall transport the person to the closest designated facility, geographically or by time, to where the peace officer took the person into custody. (b) In cases where a designated facility is unable to accept the individual and the emergency department becomes the chosen destination, the individual shall be transported to the nearest appropriate emergency department to where the peace officer first assumed custody of the individual for purposes of transport. SEC. 2. SEC. 3. If the Commission on State Mandates determines that this act contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division 4 of Title 2 of the Government Code.