Patient visitation.

Assembly Member Gallagher's patient visitation measure, known as Dianne's Law, expands the categories of family members permitted to visit patients in California health facilities while establishing protocols to maintain safety during health emergencies.

The legislation requires facilities to allow visits from a patient's spouse, domestic partner, children, parents, grandchildren, and grandparents, as well as the children and domestic partners of a patient's parents or children. While facilities may implement reasonable restrictions on visiting hours and visitor numbers, they must develop alternative protocols that maximize visitation opportunities when health or safety concerns necessitate access limitations. The bill prohibits facilities from denying in-person visits during end-of-life situations unless explicitly refused by the patient.

For end-of-life visitation, facilities may require visitors to follow personal protective equipment (PPE) and testing protocols equivalent to staff requirements. The bill mandates that facilities provide necessary PPE and testing resources to these visitors when such materials have been made available by state or local entities. Infants under one year old are exempt from visitor count restrictions, and facilities retain the ability to deny access to violent or potentially violent individuals.

The measure builds upon existing state law requiring facilities to permit visits from domestic partners and their children. It maintains current provisions allowing facilities to restrict access when a visitor poses a demonstrated risk to health and safety or when the patient has declined visits. The legislation includes no new civil or criminal liability for facilities that comply with its requirements.