§1165.2. Health Care Information Technology and Infrastructure Advisory Collaborative; membership; powers and duties; annual report

A.(1) The legislature recognizes the need to pursue electronic health care information technology for the residents of Louisiana in a coordinated, systematic, thoughtful, and focused manner. The legislature further recognizes that health care information technology plays a significant role in transforming the health care system and in supporting communities. Electronic health care records are rapidly evolving and becoming more standardized in order to better meet the needs of physicians, clinicians, and patients. The legislature desires to obtain information for the development and adoption of uniform standards for interoperable electronic health care records to better protect the privacy and confidentiality of personal health care information of Louisiana residents while advancing the use of electronic health care information technology.

(2) Pursuant to Senate Concurrent Resolution 35 of the 2007 Regular Session, the Louisiana Department of Health facilitated the establishment of the Louisiana Health Care Quality Forum as a nonprofit corporation, which was incorporated on July 6, 2007, and whose purpose is to plan, promote and conduct quality improvement initiatives within the state. The Louisiana Health Care Quality Forum has identified the promotion of health information technology as a major focus in its strategic work plan.

(3) In Act 203 of the 2007 Regular Session, the legislature provided a line item appropriation within the Louisiana Department of Health budget for the establishment of a network among Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center at Shreveport and the Rural Hospital Coalition, now known as the Louisiana Rural Health Information Exchange, hereinafter referred to in this Section as "LARHIX".

B. The legislature hereby establishes the Health Care Information Technology and Infrastructure Collaborative to be composed of LARHIX, the Health Information Technology Committee of the Louisiana Health Care Quality Forum and any other current or future regional health information exchange, hereinafter referred to in this Section as "collaborative". The collaborative shall advise the secretary of the Louisiana Department of Health on strategies for the advancement of the use of electronic health information technology through the identification of state laws and regulations that impede such advancement, including but not limited to those laws and regulations that concern the form of consent to medical treatment and authorization for other health care transactions, and matters related to facilitation of telemedicine consultations.

C. The collaborative shall provide the secretary of the Louisiana Department of Health with its annual report on such matters no later than January thirtieth of each year. The collaborative shall submit its annual report to the House and Senate committees on health and welfare for approval by January thirtieth of each year.

Acts 2008, No. 763, §1, eff. July 6, 2008; Redesignated from R.S. 40:1299.96.1 by HCR 84 of 2015 R.S.