California Legislature—2013–14 Regular Session

Assembly BillNo. 268


Introduced by Assembly Member Holden

February 7, 2013


An act to amend Section 123130 of the Health and Safety Code, relating to health records.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 268, as introduced, Holden. Health records: access.

Existing law provides that a patient or his or her representative is entitled to inspect a patient’s health records upon presenting a written request and upon payment for reasonable clerical costs incurred in locating and making the records available. Existing law authorizes a health care provider to prepare a summary of the patient’s record for inspection and copying by a patient rather than allowing the patient to access the entire record. A willful violation of these provisions by certain health care providers is an infraction.

This bill would, in addition, authorize a health care provider to prepare the summary of the patient’s record for inspection and copying by the patient’s representative. Because the bill would change the definition of an infraction, it would constitute a state-mandated local program.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: yes.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

P2    1

SECTION 1.  

Section 123130 of the Health and Safety Code
2 is amended to read:

3

123130.  

(a)  A health care provider may prepare a summary
4of the record, according to the requirements of this section, for
5inspection and copying by a patientbegin insert or patient’s representativeend insert. If
6the health care provider chooses to prepare a summary of the record
7rather than allowing access to the entire record, he or she shall
8make the summary of the record available to the patientbegin insert or patient’s
9representativeend insert
within 10 working days from the date of the patient’s
10begin insert or patient’s representative’send insert request. However, if more time is
11needed because the record is of extraordinary length or because
12the patient was discharged from a licensed health facility within
13the last 10 days, the health care provider shall notify the patientbegin insert end insert
14begin insertor patient’s representativeend insert of this fact and the date that the
15summary will be completed, but in no case shall more than 30 days
16elapse between the request by the patientbegin insert or patient’s representativeend insert
17 and the delivery of the summary. In preparing the summary of the
18record the health care provider shall not be obligated to include
19information that is not contained in the original record.

20(b)  A health care provider may confer with the patientbegin insert or
21patient’s representativeend insert
in an attempt to clarify the patient’sbegin insert or
22patient’s representative’send insert
purpose and goal in obtainingbegin delete his or herend delete
23begin insert the patient’send insert record. If as a consequence the patientbegin insert end insertbegin insertor patient’s
24representativeend insert
requests information about only certain injuries,
25illnesses, or episodes, this subdivision shall not require the provider
26to prepare the summary required by this subdivision for other than
27the injuries, illnesses, or episodes so requested by the patientbegin insert or
28patient’s representativeend insert
. The summary shall contain for each injury,
29illness, or episode any information included in the record relative
30to the following:

31(1)  Chief complaint or complaints including pertinent history.

32(2)  Findings from consultations and referrals to other health
33care providers.

34(3)  Diagnosis, where determined.

35(4)  Treatment plan and regimen including medications
36prescribed.

37(5)  Progress of the treatment.

P3    1(6)  Prognosis including significant continuing problems or
2conditions.

3(7)  Pertinent reports of diagnostic procedures and tests and all
4discharge summaries.

5(8)  Objective findings from the most recent physical
6examination, such as blood pressure, weight, and actual values
7from routine laboratory tests.

8(c)  This section shall not be construed to require any medical
9records to be written or maintained in any manner not otherwise
10required by law.

11(d)  The summary shall contain a list of all current medications
12prescribed, including dosage, and any sensitivities or allergies to
13medications recorded by the provider.

14(e)  Subdivision (c) of Section 123110 shall be applicable
15whether or not the health care provider elects to prepare a summary
16of the record.

17(f)  The health care provider may charge no more than a
18reasonable fee based on actual time and cost for the preparation
19of the summary. The cost shall be based on a computation of the
20actual time spent preparing the summary for availability to the
21patient or the patient’s representative. It is the intent of the
22Legislature that summaries of the records be made available at the
23lowest possible cost to the patient.

24

SEC. 2.  

No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
25Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because
26the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school
27district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or
28infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty
29for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of
30the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within
31the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
32Constitution.



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