State Codes and Statutes

Statutes > California > Civ > 56-56.07

CIVIL CODE
SECTION 56-56.07



56.  This part may be cited as the Confidentiality of Medical
Information Act.


56.05.  For purposes of this part:
   (a) "Authorization" means permission granted in accordance with
Section 56.11 or 56.21 for the disclosure of medical information.
   (b) "Authorized recipient" means any person who is authorized to
receive medical information pursuant to Section 56.10 or 56.20.
   (c) "Contractor" means any person or entity that is a medical
group, independent practice association, pharmaceutical benefits
manager, or a medical service organization and is not a health care
service plan or provider of health care. "Contractor" does not
include insurance institutions as defined in subdivision (k) of
Section 791.02 of the Insurance Code or pharmaceutical benefits
managers licensed pursuant to the Knox-Keene Health Care Service Plan
Act of 1975 (Chapter 2.2 (commencing with Section 1340) of Division
2 of the Health and Safety Code).
   (d) "Health care service plan" means any entity regulated pursuant
to the Knox-Keene Health Care Service Plan Act of 1975 (Chapter 2.2
(commencing with Section 1340) of Division 2 of the Health and Safety
Code).
   (e) "Licensed health care professional" means any person licensed
or certified pursuant to Division 2 (commencing with Section 500) of
the Business and Professions Code, the Osteopathic Initiative Act or
the Chiropractic Initiative Act, or Division 2.5 (commencing with
Section 1797) of the Health and Safety Code.
   (f) "Marketing" means to make a communication about a product or
service that encourages recipients of the communication to purchase
or use the product or service.
   "Marketing" does not include any of the following:
   (1) Communications made orally or in writing for which the
communicator does not receive direct or indirect remuneration,
including, but not limited to, gifts, fees, payments, subsidies, or
other economic benefits, from a third party for making the
communication.
   (2) Communications made to current enrollees solely for the
purpose of describing a provider's participation in an existing
health care provider network or health plan network of a Knox-Keene
licensed health plan to which the enrollees already subscribe;
communications made to current enrollees solely for the purpose of
describing if, and the extent to which, a product or service, or
payment for a product or service, is provided by a provider,
contractor, or plan or included in a plan of benefits of a Knox-Keene
licensed health plan to which the enrollees already subscribe; or
communications made to plan enrollees describing the availability of
more cost-effective pharmaceuticals.
   (3) Communications that are tailored to the circumstances of a
particular individual to educate or advise the individual about
treatment options, and otherwise maintain the individual's adherence
to a prescribed course of medical treatment, as provided in Section
1399.901 of the Health and Safety Code, for a chronic and seriously
debilitating or life-threatening condition as defined in subdivisions
(d) and (e) of Section 1367.21 of the Health and Safety Code, if the
health care provider, contractor, or health plan receives direct or
indirect remuneration, including, but not limited to, gifts, fees,
payments, subsidies, or other economic benefits, from a third party
for making the communication, if all of the following apply:
   (A) The individual receiving the communication is notified in the
communication in typeface no smaller than 14-point type of the fact
that the provider, contractor, or health plan has been remunerated
and the source of the remuneration.
   (B) The individual is provided the opportunity to opt out of
receiving future remunerated communications.
   (C) The communication contains instructions in typeface no smaller
than 14-point type describing how the individual can opt out of
receiving further communications by calling a toll-free number of the
health care provider, contractor, or health plan making the
remunerated communications. No further communication may be made to
an individual who has opted out after 30 calendar days from the date
the individual makes the opt out request.
   (g) "Medical information" means any individually identifiable
information, in electronic or physical form, in possession of or
derived from a provider of health care, health care service plan,
pharmaceutical company, or contractor regarding a patient's medical
history, mental or physical condition, or treatment. "Individually
identifiable" means that the medical information includes or contains
any element of personal identifying information sufficient to allow
identification of the individual, such as the patient's name,
address, electronic mail address, telephone number, or social
security number, or other information that, alone or in combination
with other publicly available information, reveals the individual's
identity.
   (h) "Patient" means any natural person, whether or not still
living, who received health care services from a provider of health
care and to whom medical information pertains.
   (i) "Pharmaceutical company" means any company or business, or an
agent or representative thereof, that manufactures, sells, or
distributes pharmaceuticals, medications, or prescription drugs.
"Pharmaceutical company" does not include a pharmaceutical benefits
manager, as included in subdivision (c), or a provider of health
care.
   (j) "Provider of health care" means any person licensed or
certified pursuant to Division 2 (commencing with Section 500) of the
Business and Professions Code; any person licensed pursuant to the
Osteopathic Initiative Act or the Chiropractic Initiative Act; any
person certified pursuant to Division 2.5 (commencing with Section
1797) of the Health and Safety Code; any clinic, health dispensary,
or health facility licensed pursuant to Division 2 (commencing with
Section 1200) of the Health and Safety Code. "Provider of health care"
does not include insurance institutions as defined in subdivision
(k) of Section 791.02 of the Insurance Code.



56.06.  (a) Any business organized for the purpose of maintaining
medical information in order to make the information available to an
individual or to a provider of health care at the request of the
individual or a provider of health care, for purposes of allowing the
individual to manage his or her information, or for the diagnosis
and treatment of the individual, shall be deemed to be a provider of
health care subject to the requirements of this part. However,
nothing in this section shall be construed to make a business
specified in this subdivision a provider of health care for purposes
of any law other than this part, including laws that specifically
incorporate by reference the definitions of this part.
   (b) Any business described in subdivision (a) shall maintain the
same standards of confidentiality required of a provider of health
care with respect to medical information disclosed to the business.
   (c) Any business described in subdivision (a) shall be subject to
the penalties for improper use and disclosure of medical information
prescribed in this part.



56.07.  (a) Except as provided in subdivision (c), upon the patient'
s written request, any corporation described in Section 56.06, or any
other entity that compiles or maintains medical information for any
reason, shall provide the patient, at no charge, with a copy of any
medical profile, summary, or information maintained by the
corporation or entity with respect to the patient.
   (b) A request by a patient pursuant to this section shall not be
deemed to be an authorization by the patient for the release or
disclosure of any information to any person or entity other than the
patient.
   (c) This section shall not apply to any patient records that are
subject to inspection by the patient pursuant to Section 123110 of
the Health and Safety Code and shall not be deemed to limit the right
of a health care provider to charge a fee for the preparation of a
summary of patient records as provided in Section 123130 of the
Health and Safety Code. This section shall not apply to a health care
service plan licensed pursuant to Chapter 2.2 (commencing with
Section 1340) of Division 2 of the Health and Safety Code or a
disability insurer licensed pursuant to the Insurance Code. This
section shall not apply to medical information compiled or maintained
by a fire and casualty insurer or its retained counsel in the
regular course of investigating or litigating a claim under a policy
of insurance that it has written. For the purposes of this section, a
fire and casualty insurer is an insurer writing policies that may be
sold by a fire and casualty licensee pursuant to Section 1625 of the
Insurance Code.


State Codes and Statutes

Statutes > California > Civ > 56-56.07

CIVIL CODE
SECTION 56-56.07



56.  This part may be cited as the Confidentiality of Medical
Information Act.


56.05.  For purposes of this part:
   (a) "Authorization" means permission granted in accordance with
Section 56.11 or 56.21 for the disclosure of medical information.
   (b) "Authorized recipient" means any person who is authorized to
receive medical information pursuant to Section 56.10 or 56.20.
   (c) "Contractor" means any person or entity that is a medical
group, independent practice association, pharmaceutical benefits
manager, or a medical service organization and is not a health care
service plan or provider of health care. "Contractor" does not
include insurance institutions as defined in subdivision (k) of
Section 791.02 of the Insurance Code or pharmaceutical benefits
managers licensed pursuant to the Knox-Keene Health Care Service Plan
Act of 1975 (Chapter 2.2 (commencing with Section 1340) of Division
2 of the Health and Safety Code).
   (d) "Health care service plan" means any entity regulated pursuant
to the Knox-Keene Health Care Service Plan Act of 1975 (Chapter 2.2
(commencing with Section 1340) of Division 2 of the Health and Safety
Code).
   (e) "Licensed health care professional" means any person licensed
or certified pursuant to Division 2 (commencing with Section 500) of
the Business and Professions Code, the Osteopathic Initiative Act or
the Chiropractic Initiative Act, or Division 2.5 (commencing with
Section 1797) of the Health and Safety Code.
   (f) "Marketing" means to make a communication about a product or
service that encourages recipients of the communication to purchase
or use the product or service.
   "Marketing" does not include any of the following:
   (1) Communications made orally or in writing for which the
communicator does not receive direct or indirect remuneration,
including, but not limited to, gifts, fees, payments, subsidies, or
other economic benefits, from a third party for making the
communication.
   (2) Communications made to current enrollees solely for the
purpose of describing a provider's participation in an existing
health care provider network or health plan network of a Knox-Keene
licensed health plan to which the enrollees already subscribe;
communications made to current enrollees solely for the purpose of
describing if, and the extent to which, a product or service, or
payment for a product or service, is provided by a provider,
contractor, or plan or included in a plan of benefits of a Knox-Keene
licensed health plan to which the enrollees already subscribe; or
communications made to plan enrollees describing the availability of
more cost-effective pharmaceuticals.
   (3) Communications that are tailored to the circumstances of a
particular individual to educate or advise the individual about
treatment options, and otherwise maintain the individual's adherence
to a prescribed course of medical treatment, as provided in Section
1399.901 of the Health and Safety Code, for a chronic and seriously
debilitating or life-threatening condition as defined in subdivisions
(d) and (e) of Section 1367.21 of the Health and Safety Code, if the
health care provider, contractor, or health plan receives direct or
indirect remuneration, including, but not limited to, gifts, fees,
payments, subsidies, or other economic benefits, from a third party
for making the communication, if all of the following apply:
   (A) The individual receiving the communication is notified in the
communication in typeface no smaller than 14-point type of the fact
that the provider, contractor, or health plan has been remunerated
and the source of the remuneration.
   (B) The individual is provided the opportunity to opt out of
receiving future remunerated communications.
   (C) The communication contains instructions in typeface no smaller
than 14-point type describing how the individual can opt out of
receiving further communications by calling a toll-free number of the
health care provider, contractor, or health plan making the
remunerated communications. No further communication may be made to
an individual who has opted out after 30 calendar days from the date
the individual makes the opt out request.
   (g) "Medical information" means any individually identifiable
information, in electronic or physical form, in possession of or
derived from a provider of health care, health care service plan,
pharmaceutical company, or contractor regarding a patient's medical
history, mental or physical condition, or treatment. "Individually
identifiable" means that the medical information includes or contains
any element of personal identifying information sufficient to allow
identification of the individual, such as the patient's name,
address, electronic mail address, telephone number, or social
security number, or other information that, alone or in combination
with other publicly available information, reveals the individual's
identity.
   (h) "Patient" means any natural person, whether or not still
living, who received health care services from a provider of health
care and to whom medical information pertains.
   (i) "Pharmaceutical company" means any company or business, or an
agent or representative thereof, that manufactures, sells, or
distributes pharmaceuticals, medications, or prescription drugs.
"Pharmaceutical company" does not include a pharmaceutical benefits
manager, as included in subdivision (c), or a provider of health
care.
   (j) "Provider of health care" means any person licensed or
certified pursuant to Division 2 (commencing with Section 500) of the
Business and Professions Code; any person licensed pursuant to the
Osteopathic Initiative Act or the Chiropractic Initiative Act; any
person certified pursuant to Division 2.5 (commencing with Section
1797) of the Health and Safety Code; any clinic, health dispensary,
or health facility licensed pursuant to Division 2 (commencing with
Section 1200) of the Health and Safety Code. "Provider of health care"
does not include insurance institutions as defined in subdivision
(k) of Section 791.02 of the Insurance Code.



56.06.  (a) Any business organized for the purpose of maintaining
medical information in order to make the information available to an
individual or to a provider of health care at the request of the
individual or a provider of health care, for purposes of allowing the
individual to manage his or her information, or for the diagnosis
and treatment of the individual, shall be deemed to be a provider of
health care subject to the requirements of this part. However,
nothing in this section shall be construed to make a business
specified in this subdivision a provider of health care for purposes
of any law other than this part, including laws that specifically
incorporate by reference the definitions of this part.
   (b) Any business described in subdivision (a) shall maintain the
same standards of confidentiality required of a provider of health
care with respect to medical information disclosed to the business.
   (c) Any business described in subdivision (a) shall be subject to
the penalties for improper use and disclosure of medical information
prescribed in this part.



56.07.  (a) Except as provided in subdivision (c), upon the patient'
s written request, any corporation described in Section 56.06, or any
other entity that compiles or maintains medical information for any
reason, shall provide the patient, at no charge, with a copy of any
medical profile, summary, or information maintained by the
corporation or entity with respect to the patient.
   (b) A request by a patient pursuant to this section shall not be
deemed to be an authorization by the patient for the release or
disclosure of any information to any person or entity other than the
patient.
   (c) This section shall not apply to any patient records that are
subject to inspection by the patient pursuant to Section 123110 of
the Health and Safety Code and shall not be deemed to limit the right
of a health care provider to charge a fee for the preparation of a
summary of patient records as provided in Section 123130 of the
Health and Safety Code. This section shall not apply to a health care
service plan licensed pursuant to Chapter 2.2 (commencing with
Section 1340) of Division 2 of the Health and Safety Code or a
disability insurer licensed pursuant to the Insurance Code. This
section shall not apply to medical information compiled or maintained
by a fire and casualty insurer or its retained counsel in the
regular course of investigating or litigating a claim under a policy
of insurance that it has written. For the purposes of this section, a
fire and casualty insurer is an insurer writing policies that may be
sold by a fire and casualty licensee pursuant to Section 1625 of the
Insurance Code.



State Codes and Statutes

State Codes and Statutes

Statutes > California > Civ > 56-56.07

CIVIL CODE
SECTION 56-56.07



56.  This part may be cited as the Confidentiality of Medical
Information Act.


56.05.  For purposes of this part:
   (a) "Authorization" means permission granted in accordance with
Section 56.11 or 56.21 for the disclosure of medical information.
   (b) "Authorized recipient" means any person who is authorized to
receive medical information pursuant to Section 56.10 or 56.20.
   (c) "Contractor" means any person or entity that is a medical
group, independent practice association, pharmaceutical benefits
manager, or a medical service organization and is not a health care
service plan or provider of health care. "Contractor" does not
include insurance institutions as defined in subdivision (k) of
Section 791.02 of the Insurance Code or pharmaceutical benefits
managers licensed pursuant to the Knox-Keene Health Care Service Plan
Act of 1975 (Chapter 2.2 (commencing with Section 1340) of Division
2 of the Health and Safety Code).
   (d) "Health care service plan" means any entity regulated pursuant
to the Knox-Keene Health Care Service Plan Act of 1975 (Chapter 2.2
(commencing with Section 1340) of Division 2 of the Health and Safety
Code).
   (e) "Licensed health care professional" means any person licensed
or certified pursuant to Division 2 (commencing with Section 500) of
the Business and Professions Code, the Osteopathic Initiative Act or
the Chiropractic Initiative Act, or Division 2.5 (commencing with
Section 1797) of the Health and Safety Code.
   (f) "Marketing" means to make a communication about a product or
service that encourages recipients of the communication to purchase
or use the product or service.
   "Marketing" does not include any of the following:
   (1) Communications made orally or in writing for which the
communicator does not receive direct or indirect remuneration,
including, but not limited to, gifts, fees, payments, subsidies, or
other economic benefits, from a third party for making the
communication.
   (2) Communications made to current enrollees solely for the
purpose of describing a provider's participation in an existing
health care provider network or health plan network of a Knox-Keene
licensed health plan to which the enrollees already subscribe;
communications made to current enrollees solely for the purpose of
describing if, and the extent to which, a product or service, or
payment for a product or service, is provided by a provider,
contractor, or plan or included in a plan of benefits of a Knox-Keene
licensed health plan to which the enrollees already subscribe; or
communications made to plan enrollees describing the availability of
more cost-effective pharmaceuticals.
   (3) Communications that are tailored to the circumstances of a
particular individual to educate or advise the individual about
treatment options, and otherwise maintain the individual's adherence
to a prescribed course of medical treatment, as provided in Section
1399.901 of the Health and Safety Code, for a chronic and seriously
debilitating or life-threatening condition as defined in subdivisions
(d) and (e) of Section 1367.21 of the Health and Safety Code, if the
health care provider, contractor, or health plan receives direct or
indirect remuneration, including, but not limited to, gifts, fees,
payments, subsidies, or other economic benefits, from a third party
for making the communication, if all of the following apply:
   (A) The individual receiving the communication is notified in the
communication in typeface no smaller than 14-point type of the fact
that the provider, contractor, or health plan has been remunerated
and the source of the remuneration.
   (B) The individual is provided the opportunity to opt out of
receiving future remunerated communications.
   (C) The communication contains instructions in typeface no smaller
than 14-point type describing how the individual can opt out of
receiving further communications by calling a toll-free number of the
health care provider, contractor, or health plan making the
remunerated communications. No further communication may be made to
an individual who has opted out after 30 calendar days from the date
the individual makes the opt out request.
   (g) "Medical information" means any individually identifiable
information, in electronic or physical form, in possession of or
derived from a provider of health care, health care service plan,
pharmaceutical company, or contractor regarding a patient's medical
history, mental or physical condition, or treatment. "Individually
identifiable" means that the medical information includes or contains
any element of personal identifying information sufficient to allow
identification of the individual, such as the patient's name,
address, electronic mail address, telephone number, or social
security number, or other information that, alone or in combination
with other publicly available information, reveals the individual's
identity.
   (h) "Patient" means any natural person, whether or not still
living, who received health care services from a provider of health
care and to whom medical information pertains.
   (i) "Pharmaceutical company" means any company or business, or an
agent or representative thereof, that manufactures, sells, or
distributes pharmaceuticals, medications, or prescription drugs.
"Pharmaceutical company" does not include a pharmaceutical benefits
manager, as included in subdivision (c), or a provider of health
care.
   (j) "Provider of health care" means any person licensed or
certified pursuant to Division 2 (commencing with Section 500) of the
Business and Professions Code; any person licensed pursuant to the
Osteopathic Initiative Act or the Chiropractic Initiative Act; any
person certified pursuant to Division 2.5 (commencing with Section
1797) of the Health and Safety Code; any clinic, health dispensary,
or health facility licensed pursuant to Division 2 (commencing with
Section 1200) of the Health and Safety Code. "Provider of health care"
does not include insurance institutions as defined in subdivision
(k) of Section 791.02 of the Insurance Code.



56.06.  (a) Any business organized for the purpose of maintaining
medical information in order to make the information available to an
individual or to a provider of health care at the request of the
individual or a provider of health care, for purposes of allowing the
individual to manage his or her information, or for the diagnosis
and treatment of the individual, shall be deemed to be a provider of
health care subject to the requirements of this part. However,
nothing in this section shall be construed to make a business
specified in this subdivision a provider of health care for purposes
of any law other than this part, including laws that specifically
incorporate by reference the definitions of this part.
   (b) Any business described in subdivision (a) shall maintain the
same standards of confidentiality required of a provider of health
care with respect to medical information disclosed to the business.
   (c) Any business described in subdivision (a) shall be subject to
the penalties for improper use and disclosure of medical information
prescribed in this part.



56.07.  (a) Except as provided in subdivision (c), upon the patient'
s written request, any corporation described in Section 56.06, or any
other entity that compiles or maintains medical information for any
reason, shall provide the patient, at no charge, with a copy of any
medical profile, summary, or information maintained by the
corporation or entity with respect to the patient.
   (b) A request by a patient pursuant to this section shall not be
deemed to be an authorization by the patient for the release or
disclosure of any information to any person or entity other than the
patient.
   (c) This section shall not apply to any patient records that are
subject to inspection by the patient pursuant to Section 123110 of
the Health and Safety Code and shall not be deemed to limit the right
of a health care provider to charge a fee for the preparation of a
summary of patient records as provided in Section 123130 of the
Health and Safety Code. This section shall not apply to a health care
service plan licensed pursuant to Chapter 2.2 (commencing with
Section 1340) of Division 2 of the Health and Safety Code or a
disability insurer licensed pursuant to the Insurance Code. This
section shall not apply to medical information compiled or maintained
by a fire and casualty insurer or its retained counsel in the
regular course of investigating or litigating a claim under a policy
of insurance that it has written. For the purposes of this section, a
fire and casualty insurer is an insurer writing policies that may be
sold by a fire and casualty licensee pursuant to Section 1625 of the
Insurance Code.