Office of Regulations
Welcome to the Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) website for regulations. Here you can access both proposed and emergency regulations and submit your comments regarding the regulations. The website also provides a convenient way to make timely comments to the DHCS before the regulations become permanent.
The Office of Regulations coordinates the development and promulgation of regulations in the DHCS. The Office maintains the official rulemaking record, which includes all documents posted to this website, documents on which the DHCS relied in proposing the regulations, and all comments and testimony made by the public. Rulemaking records are available for viewing by appointment during normal business hours.
REGULATIONS FOUND ON THIS SITE
This website provides access to the public notices, regulation text, and associated documents for both proposed and emergency regulations of the DHCS.
Proposed regulations are draft regulations that have not as yet been adopted and made effective, but are being made available for public comment by means of a formal public notice issued by the DHCS. Such regulations may be significantly modified before being adopted and put into effect.
Emergency regulations are regulations that have been adopted and, customarily, made effective before being noticed for public comment. In essence, a public notice for an emergency regulation is a formal notice that an emergency regulation has been adopted and is subsequently being made available for public comment. Emergency regulations usually remain in effect for a limited period of 180 days, unless the DHCS removes this limitation by complying with the rulemaking requirements of the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) before the end of the effective period. Regulations adopted on an emergency basis may still be modified in response to public comment.
PUBLIC PROCEEDINGS
The public notice for each regulation proposal should be consulted first. It provides important information, including:
> The dates by which comments from the public must be received in the Office,
> A list of people who may be contacted for further information,
> A summary of the proposed or emergency regulatory actions, and
> When and where a public hearing will be held, if one is scheduled.
Public comments regarding both proposed and emergency regulations are solicited through public proceedings that always provide for the submission of written comments, and may also provide for the submission of oral comments through a public hearing. All comments are considered equally on their merits.
PUBLIC COMMENTS: SUMMARIES AND RESPONSES
Summaries of the comments received and responses to those comments may be found in the Final Statement of Reasons posted on this site following completion of the APA rulemaking procedures for the regulations. Written responses to each individual commenter are not prepared.
EXISTING REGULATIONS
The DHCS regulations that are in effect are published in the California Code of Regulations (CCR), Title 17, Division 1 and Title 22, Divisions 2 and 3.