(a)  If a borrower is unable to comply with subdivision (j) of Section 129050 due to selective provider contracting under the Medi-Cal program, and the department has determined the borrower has negotiated in good faith but was not awarded a contract, the borrower may be eligible for insurance under this chapter as provided in subdivision (b).

(b)  The department may determine that a noncontracting borrower shall be considered as meeting the requirements of subdivision (j) of Section 129050 if the borrower otherwise provides a community service in accordance with regulations adopted by the department. The regulations shall describe alternative methods of meeting the obligation, that may include, but not be limited to, providing free care, charity care, trauma care, community education, or primary care outreach and care to the elderly, in amounts greater than the community average. The regulations shall include a requirement that a general acute care hospital, that is not a small and rural hospital as defined in Section 124840, shall have, and continue to maintain, a 24-hour basic emergency medical service with a physician on duty, if it provided this service on January 1, 1990. The department shall have the authority to waive this requirement upon a determination by the director that this requirement would create a hardship for the hospital, be inconsistent with regionalization of emergency medical services, or not be in the best interest of the population served by the hospital.

(Amended by Stats. 2021, Ch. 143, Sec. 241. (AB 133) Effective July 27, 2021.)