HEALTH AND SAFETY CODE § 1280.15. Unlawful or unauthorized access and use or disclosure of patients’ medical information; Investigation; Report, Cal Health & Saf Code § 1280.15

Summary

(a) A clinic, health facility, home health agency, or hospice licensed pursuant to Section 1204, 1250, 1725, or 1745 shall prevent unlawful or unauthorized access to, and use or disclosure of, patients’ medical information, as defined in Section 56.05 of the Civil Code and consistent with Section 1280.18. For purposes of this section, internal paper records, electronic mail, or facsimile transmissions inadvertently misdirected within the same facility or health care system within the course of coordinating care or delivering services shall not constitute unauthorized access to, or use or disclosure of, a patient’s medical information. The department, after investigation, may assess an administrative penalty for a violation of this section of up to twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000) per patient whose medical information was unlawfully or without authorization accessed, used, or disclosed, and up to seventeen thousand five hundred dollars ($17,500) per subsequent occurrence of ...