33-36-305. Confidentiality of health care and quality assurance records -- disclosure. (1) Except as provided in subsection (2), the following information held by a health carrier offering a closed plan or a combination plan is confidential and may not be disclosed by the carrier to a person:

(a) information pertaining to the diagnosis, treatment, or health of a covered person, regardless of whether the information is in the form of paper, is preserved on microfilm, or is stored in computer-retrievable form;

(b) information considered by a quality assurance program and the records of its actions, including testimony of a member of a quality committee, of an officer, director, or other member of a health carrier or its staff engaged in assisting the quality committee or engaged in the health carrier's quality assessment, quality improvement, or quality assurance activities, or of any person assisting or furnishing information to the quality committee.

(2) The information specified in subsection (1) may be disclosed:

(a) as allowed by Title 33, chapter 19;

(b) as required in proceedings before the commissioner, a professional or occupational licensing board provided in Title 37, or the department pursuant to Title 50, chapter 5, part 2;

(c) in an appeal, if an appeal is permitted, from a quality committee's findings or recommendations; or

(d) as otherwise required by law or court order, including a judicial or administrative subpoena.

(3) Information specified in subsection (1) identifying:

(a) the provider may also be disclosed upon a written, dated, and signed approval of the provider if the information does not identify the covered person;

(b) the covered person may also be disclosed upon a written, dated, and signed approval of the covered person or of the parent or guardian of a covered person if the covered person is a minor and if the information does not identify the provider;

(c) neither the provider nor the covered person may also be disclosed upon request for use for statistical purposes only.

History: En. Sec. 27, Ch. 413, L. 1997.