1. Upon receipt of a report the department or the department of health and senior services, if such facility or program is licensed pursuant to chapter 197, shall initiate an investigation within twenty-four hours. The department of mental health shall complete all investigations within sixty days, unless good cause for the failure to complete the investigation is documented.

2. If the investigation indicates possible abuse or neglect of a patient, resident or client, the investigator shall refer the complaint together with the investigator’s report to the department director for appropriate action. If, during the investigation or at its completion, the department has reasonable cause to believe that immediate removal from a facility not operated or funded by the department is necessary to protect the residents from abuse or neglect, the department or the local prosecuting attorney may, or the attorney general upon request of the department shall, file a petition for temporary care and protection of the residents in a circuit court of competent jurisdiction. The circuit court in which the petition is filed shall have equitable jurisdiction to issue an ex parte order granting the department authority for the temporary care and protection of the resident for a period not to exceed thirty days.

3. (1) Except as otherwise provided in this section, reports referred to in section 630.165 and the investigative reports referred to in this section shall be confidential, shall not be deemed a public record, and shall not be subject to the provisions of section 109.180 or chapter 610. Investigative reports pertaining to abuse and neglect shall remain confidential until a final report is complete, subject to the conditions contained in this section. Final reports of substantiated abuse or neglect issued on or after August 28, 2007, are open and shall be available for release in accordance with chapter 610. The names and all other identifying information in such final substantiated reports, including diagnosis and treatment information about the patient, resident, or client who is the subject of such report, shall be confidential and may only be released to the patient, resident, or client who has not been adjudged incapacitated under chapter 475, the custodial parent or guardian parent, or other guardian of the patient, resident or client. The names and other descriptive information of the complainant, witnesses, or other persons for whom findings are not made against in the final substantiated report shall be confidential and not deemed a public record. Final reports of unsubstantiated allegations of abuse and neglect shall remain closed records and shall only be released to the parents or other guardian of the patient, resident, or client who is the subject of such report, patient, resident, or client and the department vendor, provider, agent, or facility where the patient, resident, or client was receiving department services at the time of the unsubstantiated allegations of abuse and neglect, but the names and any other descriptive information of the complainant or any other person mentioned in the reports shall not be disclosed unless such complainant or person specifically consents to such disclosure. Requests for final reports of substantiated or unsubstantiated abuse or neglect from a patient, resident or client who has not been adjudged incapacitated under chapter 475 may be denied or withheld if the director of the department or his or her designee determines that such release would jeopardize the person’s therapeutic care, treatment, habilitation, or rehabilitation, or the safety of others and provided that the reasons for such denial or withholding are submitted in writing to the patient, resident or client who has not been adjudged incapacitated under chapter 475. All reports referred to in this section shall be admissible in any judicial proceedings or hearing in accordance with section 621.075 or any administrative hearing before the director of the department of mental health, or the director’s designee. All such reports may be disclosed by the department of mental health to law enforcement officers and public health officers, but only to the extent necessary to carry out the responsibilities of their offices, and to the department of social services, and the department of health and senior services, and to boards appointed pursuant to sections 205.968 to 205.990 that are providing services to the patient, resident or client as necessary to report or have investigated abuse, neglect, or rights violations of patients, residents or clients provided that all such law enforcement officers, public health officers, department of social services’ officers, department of health and senior services’ officers, and boards shall be obligated to keep such information confidential.

(2) Except as otherwise provided in this section, the proceedings, findings, deliberations, reports and minutes of committees of health care professionals as defined in section 537.035 or mental health professionals as defined in section 632.005 who have the responsibility to evaluate, maintain, or monitor the quality and utilization of mental health services are privileged and shall not be subject to the discovery, subpoena or other means of legal compulsion for their release to any person or entity or be admissible into evidence into any judicial or administrative action for failure to provide adequate or appropriate care. Such committees may exist, either within department facilities or its agents, contractors, or vendors, as applicable. Except as otherwise provided in this section, no person who was in attendance at any investigation or committee proceeding shall be permitted or required to disclose any information acquired in connection with or in the course of such proceeding or to disclose any opinion, recommendation or evaluation of the committee or board or any member thereof; provided, however, that information otherwise discoverable or admissible from original sources is not to be construed as immune from discovery or use in any proceeding merely because it was presented during proceedings before any committee or in the course of any investigation, nor is any member, employee or agent of such committee or other person appearing before it to be prevented from testifying as to matters within their personal knowledge and in accordance with the other provisions of this section, but such witness cannot be questioned about the testimony or other proceedings before any investigation or before any committee.

(3) Nothing in this section shall limit authority otherwise provided by law of a health care licensing board of the state of Missouri to obtain information by subpoena or other authorized process from investigation committees or to require disclosure of otherwise confidential information relating to matters and investigations within the jurisdiction of such health care licensing boards; provided, however, that such information, once obtained by such board and associated persons, shall be governed in accordance with the provisions of this subsection.

(4) Nothing in this section shall limit authority otherwise provided by law in subdivisions (5) and (6) of subsection 2 of section 630.140 concerning access to records by the entity or agency authorized to implement a system to protect and advocate the rights of persons with developmental disabilities under the provisions of 42 U.S.C. Sections 15042 to 15044 and the entity or agency authorized to implement a system to protect and advocate the rights of persons with mental illness under the provisions of 42 U.S.C. § 10801. In addition, nothing in this section shall serve to negate assurances that have been given by the governor of Missouri to the U.S. Administration on Developmental Disabilities, Office of Human Development Services, Department of Health and Human Services concerning access to records by the agency designated as the protection and advocacy system for the state of Missouri. However, such information, once obtained by such entity or agency, shall be governed in accordance with the provisions of this subsection.

4. Any person who makes a report pursuant to this section or who testifies in any administrative or judicial proceeding arising from the report shall be immune from any civil liability for making such a report or for testifying unless such person acted in bad faith or with malicious purpose.

5. (1) Within five working days after a report required to be made pursuant to this section is received, the person making the report shall be notified in writing of its receipt and of the initiation of the investigation.

(2) For investigations alleging neglect of a patient, resident, or client, the guardian of such patient, resident, or client shall be notified of:

(a) The investigation and given an opportunity to provide information to the investigators;

(b) The results of the investigation within five working days of the completion of the investigation and decision of the department of mental health of the results of the investigation.

6. The department of mental health shall obtain two independent reviews of all patient, resident, or client deaths that it investigates.

7. No person who directs or exercises any authority in a residential facility, day program or specialized service shall evict, harass, dismiss or retaliate against a patient, resident or client or employee because he or she or any member of his or her family has made a report of any violation or suspected violation of laws, ordinances or regulations applying to the facility which he or she has reasonable cause to believe has been committed or has occurred.

8. Any person employed in a position described under subdivision (2) of subsection 1 of section 36.030 who is discharged as a result of an administrative substantiation of allegations contained in a report of abuse or neglect may, after exhausting administrative remedies as provided in chapter 36, appeal such decision to the circuit court of the county in which such person resides within ninety days of such final administrative decision. The court may accept an appeal up to twenty-four months after the party filing the appeal received notice of the department’s determination, upon a showing that:

(1) Good cause exists for the untimely commencement of the request for the review;

(2) If the opportunity to appeal is not granted it will adversely affect the party’s opportunity for employment; and

(3) There is no other adequate remedy at law.