Bill to create physician health program advances after contentious hearing over scope and oversight

Assemblymember Berman presented AB 408, a bill authorizing the Medical Board of California to establish a physician health and wellness program that would promote early intervention, confidential treatment and monitoring for health conditions — including substance use disorders — that could impair a licensee’s ability to practice safely.

Supporters, including the Medical Board’s executive director and the California Medical Association, said California is one of the few states without a state-recognized physician-health program and argued that confidential programs reduce stigma and encourage clinicians to seek care before harm occurs. Rajiv Voorhees, executive director of the Medical Board of California, told the committee that the board’s current approach is reactive: “the board’s only tool ... is to go…