California medical board furloughs ruled legal

Furloughs of state medical board employees mandated by the state of California are legal and the fees physicians pay for licensing can be transferred to the state's general fund, a judge ruled March 4.

The California Medical Assn. was considering whether to appeal at this article's deadline.

"We're not disputing that California is in a fiscal emergency and dealing with major budget deficits. But we believe the judge gave too much deference to the governor to deal with that problem, which means, in our view, she failed to properly apply the law," said Long Do, the CMA's director of litigation. "We're confident that ultimately an appellate court will correct the wrong."

San Francisco Superior Court Judge Charlotte Walter Woolard ruled that the Medical Board of California's ability to eliminate a backlog of licensed applicants in December 2009 proved that the state-mandated furloughs did not render the board incapable of performing its duties. Woolard also found the state's transfer of $6 million from the board's contingency fund to the general fund for state use did not violate any laws.

The CMA was disappointed with the decision, insisting that the board's backlog was eradicated because employees worked overtime and additional staff were hired. The association fears that a logjam of physician license applications will occur again this year.

The judge's ruling stems from a lawsuit the CMA filed in October 2009 to end state-ordered furloughs of board employees. The CMA contends that forced days off impacted the board's processing of applicants and its investigations of alleged physician misconduct.

State furloughs

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's office says furloughs were necessary to ensure the fiscal well-being of the state. California had a $60 billion deficit, according to Rachel Arrezola, a spokeswoman for the governor's office. She said the state is now facing a $20 billion shortfall for the upcoming budget year, which begins in July.

Furloughs two days a month were implemented in February 2009, then increased to three days a month in July 2009. The mandatory days off are expected to end June 30, Arrezola said.

The board's backlog predated the furloughs, according to Luis Farias, spokesman for the state's Dept. of Consumer Affairs, which oversees the board. But he said the furloughs exacerbated the problem.

At the peak of the board's processing delays in early August 2009, nearly 700 applications had not received an initial review within the required period of 60 working days, according to a report issued in January by board President Barbara Yaroslavsky.

The board, which did not publicly respond to the judge's ruling, hired 15 full- and part-time employees to help review license applications, Farias said. Staff members in other departments also pitched in.

By the end of 2009, the backlog was eliminated, largely due to the increased work force, Farias said. He noted that the shortened work weeks also pushed staff to learn to work more efficiently.