Rains

The Legislature enacted in 1992, and amended in 1994, Health and Safety Code section 1418.8. That amended statute generally allows certain incompetent patients residing in skilled nursing facilities or intermediate care facilities to receive medical treatment, after a physician has determined a patient’s incapacity to give informed consent to such treatment and an interdisciplinary review team has determined the treatment is medically appropriate. We find this statute as amended to be constitutional, and reverse the trial court’s contrary ruling.

I. Facts and Procedural History

This appeal presents solely legal issues concerning the facial constitutionality of Health and Safety Code section 1418.8 as last amended. The lower court’s ruling of unconstitutionality was directed to section 1418.8 as enacted in 1992. As we explain post, many of petitioner’s arguments in the court below as to the statute’s claimed deficiencies are inapposite to our facial constitutional review, which must be based upon the provisions of the amended statute. (See Building Industry Assn. v. City of Oxnard (1985) 40 Cal.3d 1, 3 [ 218 Cal.Rptr. 672 , 706 P.2d 285 ].) The lower court, of course,…