AB 1199 | Extending Medical Staff Reappointment Cycle to Three Years
On September 30, 2026, Governor Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill (AB) 1199 into law, which amends Business and Professions Code sections 2282 and 2453, as well as Health and Safety Code section 1275.6 to notably allow for three year reappointment cycles. These changes will go into effect January 1, 2027.
What does AB 1199 change?
AB 1199 allows medical staff reappointment to occur every three years instead of the existing two-year requirement.
Business and Professions Code section 2282 currently requires “staff appointments on an annual or biennial basis.” AB 1199 instead amends this language to require staff reappointments “at least every three years.”
Business and Professions Code section 2453 requires “all members of the physician and surgeon staff be required to demonstrate their ability to perform surgical and other procedures competently and to the satisfaction of an appropriate committee or committees of the staff at the time of original application for appointment to the staff and at least every two three years thereafter.” AB 1199 amends this to every “three” years thereafter.
Health and Safety Code section 1275.6 is similarly amended to include subsection (e), which requires the governing body of a general acute care hospital and an acute psychiatric hospital to require the medical staff to establish controls that are designed to ensure “achievement and maintenance of high standards of professional ethical practices,” as well as demonstrate their ability to perform procedures competently. They must demonstrate this at the time of original application and every “three years thereafter.” This bill also states that the Department of Health Care Access and Information (HCAI) cannot require hospitals to “undertake routine reappointments more frequently than every three years.”
Aligning with Federal Requirements
This change aligns California Law with the requirements of CMS and The Joint Commission, which went into effect February 19, 2023. At that time, regulatory Departments such as Department of Public Health and Department of Health Care Access and Information did not have an avenue to adopt these federal changes without California law changing as well.
In February 2025, Assemblymember Joe Patterson introduced AB 1199, which had the support of the California Hospital Association, California Medical Association and Physician Association of California. It moved through multiple policy committees including the Senate Business, Professions and Economic Development Committee, as well as both the Senate and Assembly Health Committees. The legislature looked at the administrative burden of the two-year cycle, while also wanting to ensure that patient safety would not be compromised.
What Does this Mean for Medical Staff?
It is important to note that while AB 1199 allows for a three-year reappointment cycle instead of a two-year cycle, it does not require this change. The Medical Staff should still consider its own capabilities and determine whether patient safety can be upheld if it transitions to a three-year cycle.
In addition, if the Medical Staff wants this change to take effect, it must update its Bylaws, policies and any other relevant documents, including reappointment applications, to make sure the language is changed from a two-year to three-year requirement.
