A. The Department is authorized to require individuals applying for initial licensure, certification, or registration, and individuals who are licensed, certified, or registered by a health regulatory board to provide information in addition to that which is required to determine the individual's qualifications. Such additional information shall include identification of the individual's self-designated specialties and subspecialties; credentials and certifications issued by professional associations, institutions and boards; and locations of each practice site, number of hours spent practicing at each practice site location, and demographic information. The Department, in consultation with the health regulatory boards, may establish criteria to identify additional data elements deemed necessary for workforce and health planning purposes. Such information shall be collected and maintained by the Department for workforce and health planning purposes in cooperation with agencies and institutions of the Commonwealth and shall be released by the Department only in the aggregate without reference to any person's name or other individual identifiers; however, the Department may release any information that identifies specific individuals for the purpose of determining shortage designations and to qualified personnel if pertinent to an investigation, research, or study, provided a written agreement between such qualified personnel and the Department, which ensures that any person to whom such identities are divulged shall preserve the confidentiality of those identities, is executed. Prior to collecting any information described in this section from individuals, the Department shall first attempt to obtain from other sources information sufficient for workforce planning purposes.

B. For the purpose of expediting the dissemination of public health information, including notice about a public health emergency, the Department is authorized to require certain licensed, certified or registered persons to report any email address, telephone number and facsimile number that may be used to contact such person in the event of a public health emergency or to provide information related to serving during a public health emergency. In the event of an animal health emergency, the Department shall provide to the State Veterinarian the email addresses, telephone numbers and facsimile numbers that may be used to contact licensed veterinarians.

Such email addresses, telephone numbers and facsimile numbers shall not be published, released or made available for any other purpose by the Department, the Department of Health, or the State Veterinarian.

The Director, in consultation with the Department of Health and the Department of Emergency Management, shall adopt regulations that identify those licensed, certified or registered persons to which the requirement to report shall apply and the procedures for reporting.

1994, c. 853; 1997, c. 806; 2003, c. 602; 2005, c. 55; 2009, c. 382.