As the 2025 legislative session concludes, the California Neurology Society (CNS) celebrates a successful year of advocacy, championing policies that protect patients, support neurological research, and uphold the highest standards of care. Through direct engagement with lawmakers, detailed position letters, and a powerful presence at our Capitol Advocacy Day, the collective voice of California’s neurologists played a vital role in shaping outcomes that benefit both physicians and the patients we serve.
ENHANCING PUBLIC SAFETY AND ACCESS TO EMERGENCY CARE
A primary focus of our advocacy has been ensuring that individuals experiencing neurological emergencies receive immediate and effective help. CNS successfully supported AB 369 (Rodriguez) – Emergency Services: Liability, which has been chaptered into law. This critical legislation extends Good Samaritan protections to volunteers who administer emergency anti-seizure rescue medication at the scene of a seizure emergency. By encouraging bystanders to act confidently and promptly, this law helps save lives and prevent brain injury through timely intervention. It removes a significant barrier to care in community settings — a reform CNS strongly endorsed to improve public safety for individuals who experience seizures.
PROMOTING AWARENESS AND UNDERSTANDING OF NEUROLOGICAL DISEASE
Raising public awareness remains a crucial step toward improving outcomes for those living with neurological conditions. This session, CNS proudly endorsed two significant awareness measures. We supported SCR 11 (Cervantes), which has passed and officially proclaims November 2025 as Epilepsy Awareness Month in California, helping reduce stigma and increase understanding for Californians living with this condition. Additionally, CNS endorsed SCR 80 (Niello), which has been adopted and declares the week of September 21–28, 2025, as Frontotemporal Degeneration (FTD) Awareness Week. This resolution brings crucial attention to this often-misdiagnosed terminal neurodegenerative disease that affects people in the prime of life, aligning with our mission to advocate for all patients impacted by neurological disorders.
REDUCING BARRIERS TO CARE AND ADVANCING RESEARCH
Reducing administrative burdens that delay treatment and creating new pathways for research funding were central to our legislative goals this session. A victory was achieved with the passage of AB 512 (Harabedian) – Prior Authorization: Shortened Timelines, which shortens the timeframe for utilization review decisions to three business days for electronic submissions and five business days for non-electronic submissions. In urgent cases, decisions will be required within 24 hours for electronic submissions and 48 hours for non-electronic submissions. This reform will help ensure neurology patients receive timely access to essential medications and treatments. Furthermore, AB 829 (Sharp-Collins), approved by the Governor, establishes the Parkinson’s Disease Research Voluntary Tax Contribution Fund, creating a sustainable public funding stream to support vital research through the California Department of Public Health.
PROTECTING PATIENT SAFETY AND CLINICAL INTEGRITY
CNS remains vigilant in opposing legislation that threatens the quality and safety of neurological care. This session, we successfully opposed SB 44 (Umberg) – Brain-Computer Interfaces: Neural Data. Although the bill aimed to enhance consumer privacy, its overly broad definitions and regulatory approach would have created significant unintended consequences for clinical neuroscience research and the practice of neurology, potentially impeding the use of critical diagnostic and therapeutic technologies. Our advocacy helped ensure this bill did not move forward.
OUR ADVOCACY IN ACTION
Our advocacy efforts helped shape these outcomes. Throughout the session, we authored detailed position letters to legislative committees, mobilized members to communicate with their representatives, and hosted a successful Capitol Advocacy Day where neurologists and patients from across the state met with legislators to share expert perspectives.
The success of this session’s work underscores the power of organized advocacy. As we look ahead, CNS remains committed to building on this momentum, monitoring the implementation of these new laws, and preparing for the opportunities of the next legislative session. We extend our deepest gratitude to every member who contributed their time and expertise. Together, we continue to protect the future of neurology.
To stay informed on our ongoing advocacy efforts, please visit our website at caneurologysociety.org/advocacy.
