CA SB1079

Adds Article 6 to the Penal Code establishing that the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation shall only provide medical services to inmates based on medical necessity and supported by outcome data as effective medical care.

Defines "medically necessary" as health care services determined by an attending physician to be reasonable and necessary to protect life, prevent significant illness or disability, or alleviate severe pain.

Prohibits provision of treatment for certain conditions including common self-resolving illnesses, cosmetic procedures, and non-medically necessary surgeries such as gender reassignment surgery, weight reduction surgery, fertility or infertility treatment, castration, vasectomy, and tubal ligation.

Allows excluded treatments to be provided in cases where both the attending physician prescribes the treatment and the relevant medical authorization review committee and health care review committee approve it based on outcome data and factors including coexisting medical problems, acuity, sentence length, availability, and cost.

Prohibits services that have no established outcome on morbidity or improved mortality for acute health conditions, including acupuncture, orthoptics, and pleoptics.