California Opt-Out Upheld – Lower Court Dismisses Lawsuit

On Friday, October 8, 2010, the California Superior Court in San Francisco granted summary judgment in favor of both California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and the California Association of Nurse Anesthetists (CANA), affirming California’s opt-out of the federal physician supervision requirement for nurse anesthetists. At the conclusion of the October 8 hearing, the presiding judge announced his finding that California state law does not require that nurse anesthetists be supervised by a physician. The judge further found that the governor did not abuse his discretion in concluding that the opt-out was consistent with state law. The court therefore ruled against the California Society of Anesthesiologists (CSA) and the California Medical Association (CMA), who filed the lawsuit in February 2010.
http://www.canainc.org/index.html