(a) Except as provided in rules 504, 504.1, and 505.5 of the Hawaii rules of evidence and subsection (b) or as authorized under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, P.L. 104-191, and federal regulations promulgated thereunder, in any civil action or any proceeding preliminary thereto or in any probate, legislative, or administrative proceeding, no covered entity, as defined in title 45 C.F.R. § 160.103, or as the same as may be from time to time amended or modified, shall disclose:
Terms Used In Hawaii Revised Statutes 323J-2
Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
Guardian: A person legally empowered and charged with the duty of taking care of and managing the property of another person who because of age, intellect, or health, is incapable of managing his (her) own affairs.
Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
Litigation: A case, controversy, or lawsuit. Participants (plaintiffs and defendants) in lawsuits are called litigants.
Plaintiff: The person who files the complaint in a civil lawsuit.
Probate: Proving a will
Reproductive health care services: includes all medical, surgical, pharmaceutical, counseling, or referral services relating to the human reproductive system, including but not limited to services relating to pregnancy, contraception, or the termination of a pregnancy. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 323J-1
Subpoena: A command to a witness to appear and give testimony.
(1) Any communication made to the covered entity, or any information obtained by the covered entity from a patient or the conservator, guardian, or other authorized legal representative of a patient relating to reproductive health care services that are permitted under the laws of the State; or(2) Any information obtained by personal examination of a patient relating to reproductive health care services that are permitted under the laws of the State, unless the patient or that patient’s conservator, guardian, or other authorized legal representative explicitly consents to the disclosure in writing in the form of a release of protected health information compliant with the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, P.L. 104-191, as amended. A covered entity shall inform the patient or the patient’s conservator, guardian, or other authorized legal representative of the patient’s right to withhold the written consent.(b) Written consent of the patient or the patient’s conservator, guardian, or other authorized legal representative shall not be required for the disclosure of the communication or information:
(1) If the records relate to a patient who is a plaintiff in a complaint pending before a court of competent jurisdiction alleging health care negligence and a request for records has been served on a named defendant in that litigation;(2) If the records are requested by a licensing authority, as defined in section 436B-2, and the request is made in connection with an investigation of a complaint to the licensing authority and the records are related to the complaint, unless the complaint is made solely on the basis that the licensee, acting within the licensee’s scope of practice, provided reproductive health care services that are lawful in this State;(3) To the director of health for records of a patient of a covered entity in connection with an investigation of a complaint, if the records are related to the complaint; or(4) If child abuse, abuse of an individual who is sixty years of age or older, abuse of an individual who is physically disabled or incompetent, or abuse of an individual with an intellectual disability is known or in good faith suspected.(c) Nothing in this section shall be construed to impede the lawful sharing of medical records as permitted by state or federal law or the rules of the court, except in the case of a subpoena or warrant issued by a court, government agency, or legislative body of another state commanding the production, copying, or inspection of medical records relating to reproductive health care services.
