Prop 29 in California returns for third straight election, most expensive ballot question in state

(KYMA, KECY/ AP News) - Proposition 29 on the California November ballot would require a doctor, nurse practitioner or physicians’ assistant to be present during treatment at the state’s 600 outpatient dialysis facilities.

Now for the third time in three elections, California voters are being asked to require changes to the operations of dialysis clinics that provide life-saving care to 80,000 people with kidney failure.

Dialysis clinic companies say that under the mandate, between two and three doctors would be required at every facility because most are open at least 16 hours a day, creating a financial burden that could lead some clinics to close.

It’s the third consecutive general election where Californians have been asked to vote on dialysis regulations and has turned out to be one of the most expensive ballot questions in state history.