CA AB2975

Standards board must amend workplace violence prevention standards by March 1, 2027 to require hospitals implement weapons detection screening at main public entrance, emergency department entrance, and labor and delivery entrance if separately accessible.

Weapons detection devices must automatically screen individuals' bodies; handheld metal detector wands cannot be sole equipment except for small and rural hospitals or those with space limitations under Title 24 regulations.

Hospitals must assign trained personnel (minimum 8 hours training covering response protocols, device operation, deescalation, and implicit bias) to operate weapons detection devices; only trained personnel may search belongings or confiscate weapons.

Hospitals must post conspicuous notices at screened entrances informing public that weapons screenings occur but no person shall be refused medical care under federal EMTALA law.

Weapons detection policy must include reasonable protocols for alternative screening if individuals refuse device screening and protocols for responding when dangerous weapons are detected; individuals may leave with detected objects and return without them.