CA AB849

Requires clinics, general acute care hospitals, and other healthcare providers to notify patients that a medical chaperone is available upon request during sensitive ultrasound examinations of the genitalia, breast, rectum, or pubic/groin region

Providers must give notice via hard copy, electronic transmission (text/email), or verbally with documentation in the patient's health record

Providers retain the right to decline performing a sensitive examination without a medical chaperone present, regardless of patient preference

Healthcare facilities must train sonographers and staff who may serve as chaperones on proper observation techniques, patient draping, neutrality, and reporting procedures for inappropriate behaviors

Provisions become operative January 1, 2027, and exclude facilities owned or operated by the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation