AB 1696 clarifies nurse-midwife authority in obstetric emergency settings
Oct 11, 2026 edition · GC-2026-0219 · Published 2026-10-11 · Version 3 · Final
AB 1696 creates specified physician-supervision exceptions for licensed nurse-midwives in obstetric emergency settings. The care must follow the referenced scope provision or a treating physician's specific obstetric-consultation request; the act preserves licensure limits and emergency-transfer safeguards.
What happened
California enacted AB 1696 on September 27 as Chapter 484. Health and Safety Code section 1317.1(n) removes the identified physician-supervision requirements for a licensed nurse-midwife in a labor and delivery unit, obstetric triage, or dedicated emergency obstetric evaluation unit. The nurse-midwife must be providing care authorized by and consistent with Business and Professions Code section 2746.5, or be specifically requested by the treating physician to provide obstetric consultation. This is a defined exception within the emergency-services, consultation, and stabilization framework.
The amended framework does not expand licensed practice scope or require transfers or admissions conflicting with EMTALA or the Lanterman-Petris-Short Act. A parallel exception appears in the special Stanford Hospital and Lucile Packard arrangement for patients with active-labor conditions. That arrangement retains an agreement to accept affected patients without nonclinical discrimination, a safe-transfer assessment, the patient's right to refuse, and prompt transport with a specially trained escort. The supervision amendment therefore does not by itself remove the surrounding facility, transfer, or professional-practice conditions.
Scope and timing
- Authority status
- Final
- Applicability
- Potentially applicable
- Audience
- Health systems, Provider networks, Health-tech
- Jurisdiction
- California
- Recorded date
- 2027-01-01
- Date type
- effective
Why it matters
This is a defined obstetric pathway, not a general exemption from all emergency-department practice limits.
Recommended action
Confirm privileges, setting, license scope and consultation or transfer arrangements before revising obstetric staffing protocols.
Sources
- AB1696 enacted final textOfficial · California Legislature · 2026-09-27 · Source review 2026-10-11
- California Constitution, Article IV section 8(c), official Assembly 2023–24 editionOfficial · California State Assembly · Source review 2026-10-14
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