§7. Hospital records

A. Except as provided in Subsections B, C, and E of this Section and R.S. 44:17, the charts, records, reports, documents, and other memoranda prepared by physicians, surgeons, psychiatrists, nurses, and employees in the public hospitals of Louisiana, adult or juvenile correctional institutions, public mental health centers, and public schools for the mentally deficient to record or indicate the past or present condition, sickness or disease, physical or mental, of the patients treated in the hospitals are exempt from the provisions of this Chapter, except the provisions of R.S. 44:36 and 39. Nothing herein shall prevent hospitals from providing necessary reports pursuant to R.S. 22:976, R.S. 29:765, R.S. 40:2019, and R.S. 44:17, nor shall any liability arise from the good faith compliance therewith.

B. The governing authority of each public hospital, adult or juvenile correctional institution, public mental health center or public state school for the mentally deficient, may make and enforce rules under which these charts, records, reports, documents or other memoranda may be exhibited, or copied by or for persons legitimately and properly interested in the disease, physical or mental, or in the condition of patients.

C. Whenever the past or present condition, sickness or disease, physical or mental, of any patient treated in any hospital, adult or juvenile correctional institution, center or school, set forth in Subsection A of this Section shall be at issue or relevant in any judicial proceeding, the charts, records, reports, documents and other memoranda referred to in said Subsection A shall be subject to discovery, subpoena and introduction into evidence in accordance with the general law of the state relating to discovery, subpoena and introduction into evidence of records and documents.

D. The records and proceedings (1) of any public hospital committee, medical organization committee, or extended care facility committee established under state or federal law or regulations or under the bylaws, rules, or regulations of such organization or institution or (2) of any hospital committee, medical organizational committee, or extended care facility committee established by a private hospital licensed under the provisions of R.S. 40:2100 et seq. shall be confidential and shall be used by such committee and the members thereof only in the exercise of the proper functions of the committee and shall not be public records and shall not be available for court subpoena. No physician; hospital, whether public or private; organization; or institution furnishing information, data, reports, or records to any such committee with respect to any patient examined or treated by such physician or confined in such hospital or institution shall, by reason of furnishing such information, be liable in damages to any person. No member of such a committee shall be liable in damages to any person for any action taken or recommendation made within the scope of the functions of such committee if such committee member acts without malice and in the reasonable belief that such action or recommendation is warranted by the facts known to him. However, medicaid or medicare benefits or insurance benefits provided by a private insurer shall not be denied to any person due to inability to secure records or proceedings referred to in this Section. Nothing contained herein shall be construed to prevent disclosure of such data to appropriate state or federal regulatory agencies which by statute or regulation are otherwise entitled to access to such data.

E. The governing authority of each public hospital, adult or juvenile correctional institution, public mental health center, or public state school for the mentally deficient, shall make available for inspection and copying and shall release upon request an abstract of the patient's record in which all identifying data has been properly encoded to assure confidentiality relating to patients treated in such institutions to the Louisiana cancer registry program established pursuant to R.S. 40:1229.70 et seq.

F. All records of interviews, health surveys, questionnaires, laboratory and clinical data, reports, statements, notes, and memoranda, which contain identifying characteristics of research subjects, hereinafter referred to as "confidential data", and which are procured and prepared by employees of public universities, medical schools, and colleges for the purpose of research, and acting in accordance with institutional Internal Review Board policy and procedures for research involving human subjects, shall be exempt from the provisions of this Chapter and shall be subject to the following provisions:

(1) No part of the confidential data shall be available for subpoena nor shall it be disclosed, discoverable, or be compelled to be produced in any civil, criminal, administrative, or other proceeding, nor shall such records be deemed admissible as evidence in any civil, criminal, or administrative proceeding, or other tribunal or court for any reason.

(2) Nothing in this Section shall prohibit the publishing of data that does not identify individuals or groups which have been assured confidentiality of identification.

(3) Nothing in this Section shall prohibit the publication of results of the research that maintains the confidentiality of the identification of the individual or group that is the subject of research pursuant to this Section.

(4) Nothing in this Section shall prohibit the voluntary disclosure of identifying characteristics of research subjects provided the researcher obtains the consent of the individuals so identified prior to the release of the information.

Amended by Acts 1962, No. 112, §1; Acts 1974, No. 315, §1; Acts 1975, No. 679, §1; Acts 1978, No. 660, §3; Acts 1979, No. 496, §1; Acts 1981, No. 417, §1; Acts 1991, No. 427, §2; Acts 1991, No. 659, §2; Acts 1995, No. 521, §2, eff. Jan. 1, 1996; Acts 1997, No. 890, §1, eff. July 10, 1997; Acts 1999, No. 736, §2; Acts 2003, No. 1206, §2; Acts 2008, No. 415, §2, eff. Jan. 1, 2009.

NOTE: See Acts 1997, No. 890, §2, relative to retroactivity.