Senate Passes Clinical Trials Bill
On Thursday, the state Senate passed SB 606 by Senator Jack Scott (D-Altadena) by a 25-15 vote.  The measure would require drug companies to post the results of all clinical trials, except Phase I, within six months of the conclusion of the trials. Although the measure does provide an exception for trade secret information to be excluded, it does not adequately protect confidential business information.  Senator Scott’s office has expressed a desire to continue working with the life sciences community on additional amendments prior to the measure being heard in the Assembly Health Committee. 

Assembly Passes Measure Setting New Guidelines for Chemicals in the Workplace
On Tuesday, the Assembly passed AB 515 by Assemblywoman Sally Lieber (D-Mountain View).  The measure would require new permissible exposure limits (PEL) to be determined for chemicals used in the workplace and would additionally require the PEL standards to be set as recommended by the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA).  CHI’s concern is that OEHHA does not receive input from industry in making PEL recommendations and the bill does not set any guidelines for OEHHA to receive industry input.  The measure will be considered next in the Senate Environmental Quality Committee. 

Health Care Reform Measures Pass Senate and Assembly
On Thursday, democrats in each house of the Legislature passed separate bills to guarantee medical care for millions of uninsured Californians.  The measures, SB 48 by Senate President pro Tem Don Perata (D-Oakland) and AB 8 by Assembly Speaker Fabian Nuñez (D-Los Angeles), propose a “pay-or-play” system that would require employers to spend 7.5% of their payroll on health care or pay into a state fund that would provide comprehensive coverage.  Nunez’s plan, unlike Perata’s, would exempt businesses that have been operating for three years or less, employ fewer than two people, or have an annual payroll of less than $100,000.  Supporters of the measures stated the reforms are critical to improving the quality of life for uninsured Californians ranging from low-wage workers to single parents to children who entered the state illegally.  Republicans argued against the measures, suggesting they constituted the largest “tax increase” in state history.   Thursday’s action sets the stage for negotiations that will involve hospital, doctor, nurse, business, consumer, labor union and low-income advocacy groups.  Gov. Schwarzenegger applauded Thursday’s votes, but said, “this is just a starting point for negotiations – everything’s on the table.” 

Deadline for 2007-08 Budget Nears
On Thursday, Gov. Schwarzenegger turned up pressure on state lawmakers for spending cuts in next year’s state budget after May tax revenue reports revealed a $764 million shortfall for the current fiscal year.  The governor recently announced his FY 2007-2008 budget proposal would leave the state with a $1.4 billion structural deficit – even if lawmakers approve his requested cuts in transportation funding, welfare and other programs.  The budget conference committees are still refining the budget, which must be passed by June 15 according to California’s constitution. 

Assembly Republican Leader Offers Redistricting Proposal
On Monday, Assembly Republican Leader Mike Villines (R-Clovis) unveiled new legislation to alter how California draws political districts, a task currently done by state legislators.  Assembly Constitutional Amendment 4 (ACA 4) joins three other legislative redistricting proposals and one proposed ballot initiative.  Villines’ proposal would strip the map-drawing authority from lawmakers and give it to an 11-member citizens commission whose members would be selected randomly from voter rolls. Under ACA 4, each state Senate district would consist of two Assembly districts, with seats being drawn to maximize political competitions.  Villines requested that his proposal be debated at a June 12 hearing of the Assembly Elections and Redistricting Committee which currently has another proposal scheduled for discussion that day.

Stem Cell Institute Distributes More Grants
The California Institute for Regenerative Medicine’s governing body voted on Tuesday to distribute 17 grants statewide to create shared lab facilities that will be used to grow and study new embryonic stem cell lines.  The $50.5 million will also support courses on the difficult techniques of deriving the cells from days-old embryos and coaxing them to grow in a Petri dish. This was the fourth round of grants allocated by the board, bringing the total state funding for human embryonic stem cell research to more than $208 million. 

CHI Annual Healthcare Policy Forum Set for August 2 in La Jolla
The CHI California Healthcare Policy Forum is an annual statewide conference focused on the relationship between biomedical innovation and public policy. This year's event will focus on the role of life sciences innovation in healthcare reform and how California’s biomedical companies, universities and research institutions can effectively engage in the healthcare reform debate. It will be held Thursday, Aug. 2 at The Salk Institute in La Jolla. Visit www.chi.org for more information or to register.