Legislation to enhance patient safety, authored by Assemblymember Mike Gipson (D-Carson), was signed into law by Governor Jerry Brown this week. Assembly Bill (AB) 444 helps the state adopt a standardization of medical epidural and enteral connectors as part of an international initiative.

“When patients receive care, they often require connection to various hospital devices. Current standards for medical connectors can lead to device misconnection, where devices that have compatible connectors are accidentally connected to the wrong device and can lead to serious medical complications,” Gipson said. “AB 444 will help effectively implement the adoption of new standards in line with the statutory deadline already in place.”

The International Organization for Standardization created a working group of 31 countries to develop a standardization of medical intravenous, enteral, and epidural connectors. California was on track to implement the new standardization by Jan. 1. However, a design glitch forced a remodeling of the epidural connector. AB 444 would extend the statutory deadline to adopt the new standard in order to provide additional time for the redesign.

“By extending the deadline to adopt the new standard by a year, AB 444 will ensure that California is able to stay current with the rest of the world as we move towards an international standard for these important medical devices,” Gipson said.