By Julia Thompson

AB 1577 (Low) (Chapter 680, Statutes of 2024), as amended on August 23, 2024, adds and repeals Article 2 of Chapter 1 of Part 3 of Division 107 of the Health and Safety Code to require a higher level of collaboration between health facilities and nursing schools.

AB 1577 aims to address the ongoing nursing shortage by increasing the number of students accepted into nursing programs. AB 1577 requires health facilities to meet with nursing schools and make a good-faith effort to accommodate nursing schools’ requests for increased clinical placement slots. The increase in slots would allow nursing schools to accept more applicants.

The meetings between the nursing schools and health facilities will be held at the behest of the nursing program. If a health facility cannot accommodate the increase in clinical spots, the facility needs to provide notice to the nursing school with the reasons the clinical slots cannot be increased by January 30th annually. If a health facility does not comply with these requirements, it will be subjected to an administrative penalty not exceeding $1,000.

The health facility’s form must include either (1) the dates and names of the schools that the health facility has met with, or (2) the reasons why the health facility cannot meet the needs for clinic participation. If the health facility cannot meet the needs of clinic enrollment, the health facility must provide a rationale, such as the facility cannot provide the requested service, the health facility lacks sufficient personnel, or the nursing school refused clinical placements due to the placement being offered at night or on the weekend.  The bill requires that the health facility’s information provided in the form remain on the department’s website for five years.

At its August 21, 2024, meeting the Board of Registered Nursing voted to take a watch status of the bill. Governor Newsom signed AB 1577 on September 27, 2024.