SEARCH SITE
VIRGINIA LAW PORTAL
- Code of Virginia
- Virginia Administrative Code
- Constitution of Virginia
- Charters
- Authorities
- Compacts
- Uncodified Acts
- RIS Users (account required)
SEARCHABLE DATABASES
- Bills & Resolutions
session legislation - Bill Summaries
session summaries - Reports to the General Assembly
House and Senate documents - Legislative Liaisons
State agency contacts
ACROSS SESSIONS
- Subject Index: Since 1995
- Bills & Resolutions: Since 1994
- Summaries: Since 1994
Developed and maintained by the Division of Legislative Automated Systems.
2004 SESSION
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. That § 8.01-581.17 of the Code of Virginia is amended and reenacted as follows:
§ 8.01-581.17. Privileged communications of certain committees and entities.
A. For the purposes of this section:
"Centralized credentialing service" means (i) gathering information relating to applications for professional staff privileges at any public or licensed private hospital or for participation as a provider in any health maintenance organization, preferred provider organization or any similar organization and (ii) providing such information to those hospitals and organizations that utilize the service.
"Patient safety data" means reports made to patient safety organizations
together with all health care data, interviews, memoranda, analyses, root cause
analyses, products of quality assurance or quality improvement processes,
corrective action plans or information collected or created by a health care
provider as a result of an occurrence related to the provision of health care
services that exacerbates an existing medical condition or could result in
injury, illness, or death.
"Patient safety organization" means any organization, group, or other entity that collects and analyzes patient safety data for the purpose of improving patient safety and health care outcomes and that is independent and not under the control of the entity that reports patient safety data.
B. The proceedings, minutes, records, and reports of any (i) medical staff
committee, utilization review committee, or other committee, board, group,
commission or other entity as specified in § 8.01-581.16 or; (ii) nonprofit
entity that provides a centralized credentialing service,; or (iii) quality
assurance or peer review committee established pursuant to guidelines approved
or adopted by (a) a national or state peer review entity, (b) a national or
state accreditation entity, (c) a national professional association of health
care providers or Virginia chapter of a national professional association of
health care providers, (d) a licensee of a managed care health insurance plan
(MCHIP) as defined in § 38.2-5800, or (e) a statewide or local association
representing health care providers licensed in the Commonwealth, together with
all communications, both oral and written, originating in or provided to such
committees or entities, are privileged communications which may not be disclosed or
obtained by legal discovery proceedings unless a circuit court, after a hearing
and for good cause arising from extraordinary circumstances being shown, orders
the disclosure of such proceedings, minutes, records, reports, or
communications. Additionally, for the purposes of this section, accreditation
and peer review records of the American College of Radiology and the Medical
Society of Virginia are considered privileged communications. Oral
communications regarding a specific medical incident involving patient care, made to
a quality assurance or peer review committee established pursuant to clause
(iii), shall be privileged only to the extent made more than 24 hours after the
occurrence of the medical incident.
C. Nothing in this section shall be construed as providing any privilege to
hospital health care provider, community services board, or behavioral health
authority medical records kept with respect to any patient in the ordinary course of business of
operating a hospital, community services board, or behavioral health authority nor to any facts
or information contained in such records nor shall this section preclude or
affect discovery of or production of evidence relating to hospitalization or
treatment of any patient in the ordinary course of hospitalization of such
patient.
D. Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, reports or patient safety data in possession of a patient safety organization, together with the identity of the reporter and all related correspondence, documentation, analysis, results or recommendations, shall be privileged and confidential and shall not be subject to a civil, criminal, or administrative subpoena or admitted as evidence in any civil, criminal, or administrative proceeding. Nothing in this subsection shall affect the discoverability or admissibility of facts, information or records referenced in subsection C as related to patient care from a source other than a patient safety organization.
E. Any patient safety organization shall promptly remove all patient-identifying information after receipt of a complete patient safety data report unless such organization is otherwise permitted by state or federal law to maintain such information. Patient safety organizations shall maintain the confidentiality of all patient-identifying information and shall not disseminate such information except as permitted by state or federal law.
F. Exchange of patient safety data among health care providers or patient safety organizations that does not identify any patient shall not constitute a waiver of any privilege established in this section.
G. Reports of patient safety data to patient safety organizations shall not abrogate obligations to make reports to health regulatory boards or agencies as required by state or federal law.
H. No employer shall take retaliatory action against an employee who in good faith makes a report of patient safety data to a patient safety organization.