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2002 SESSION

025999896
HOUSE BILL NO. 146
Offered January 9, 2002
Prefiled December 26, 2001
A BILL to amend and reenact §§ 32.1-35 and 32.1-36 of the Code of Virginia, relating to reporting and inventories of dangerous microbes and pathogens by laboratories.
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Patron-- Purkey
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Referred to Committee on Health, Welfare and Institutions
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Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:

1. That §§ 32.1-35 and 32.1-36 of the Code of Virginia are amended and reenacted as follows:

§ 32.1-35. List and reports of diseases and dangerous microbes and pathogens.

The Board shall promulgate from time to time a list of diseases, including diseases caused by exposure to any toxic substance as defined in § 32.1-239, and a list of dangerous microbes and pathogens whichthat shall be required to be reported. The Board may classify such diseases, microbes and pathogens and prescribe the manner and time of such reporting.

§ 32.1-36. Reports by physicians and laboratory directors.

A. Every physician practicing in this Commonwealth who shall diagnose or reasonably suspect that any patient of his has any disease required by the Board to be reported and every director of any laboratory doing business in this Commonwealth whichthat performs any test whose results indicate the presence of any such disease shall make a report within such time and in such manner as may be prescribed by regulations of the Board.

B. Any physician who diagnoses a venereal disease in a child twelve years of age or under shall, in addition to the requirements of subsection A hereof, report the matter, in accordance with the provisions of § 63.1-248.3, unless the physician reasonably believes that the infection was acquired congenitally or by a means other than sexual abuse.

C. Any physician practicing in this Commonwealth shall report to the local health department the identity of any patient of his who has tested positive for exposure to human immunodeficiency virus as demonstrated by such test or tests as are approved by the Board for this purpose. However, there is no duty on the part of the physician to notify any third party other than the local health department of such test result, and a cause of action shall not arise from any failure to notify any other third party.

D. Upon investigation by the local health department of a patient reported pursuant to subsection A, the Commissioner may, to the extent permitted by law, disclose the patient's identity and disease to the patient's employer if the Commissioner determines that (i) the patient's employment responsibilities require contact with the public and (ii) the nature of the patient's disease and nature of contact with the public constitutes a threat to the public health.

The patient's identity and disease state shall be confidential as provided in §§ 32.1-36.1 and 32.1-41. Any unauthorized disclosure of reports made pursuant to this section shall be subject to the penalties of § 32.1-27.

E. Physicians and laboratory directors may voluntarily report additional information at the request of the Department of Health for special surveillance or other epidemiological studies.

F. Every laboratory located in this Commonwealth shall file a written report with the Department of its inventory of dangerous microbes and pathogens on an annual basis. The laboratory shall supplement this report upon any change in such inventory as prescribed by the Board or immediately if any microbes or pathogens cannot be accounted for within twenty-four hours.