(a) Privacy Practices.
(1) Physicians that communicate with patients by electronic
communications other than telephone or facsimile must provide patients
with written notification of the physicians' privacy practices prior
to evaluation or treatment. In addition, a good faith effort must
be made to obtain the patient's written acknowledgement, including
by e-mail, of the notice.
(2) The notice of privacy practices shall include language
that is consistent with federal standards under 45 CFR Parts 160 and
164 relating to privacy of individually identifiable health information.
(b) Limitations of Telemedicine. Physicians who use
telemedicine medical services must, prior to providing services, give
their patients notice regarding telemedicine medical services, including
the risks and benefits of being treated via telemedicine, how to receive
follow-up care or assistance in the event of an adverse reaction to
the treatment or in the event of an inability to communicate as a
result of a technological or equipment failure. A signed and dated
notice, including an electronic acknowledgement, by the patient establishes
a presumption of notice.
(c) Necessity of In-Person Evaluation. When, for whatever
reason, the telemedicine modality in use for a particular patient
encounter is unable to provide all pertinent clinical information
that a health care provider exercising ordinary skill and care would
deem reasonably necessary for the practice of medicine at an acceptable
level of safety and quality in the context of that particular medical
encounter, then the distant site provider must make this known to
the patient prior to the conclusion of the live telemedicine encounter
and advise the patient, prior to the conclusion of the live telemedicine
encounter, regarding the need for the patient to obtain an additional
in-person medical evaluation reasonably able to meet the patient's
needs.
(d) Complaints to the Board. Physicians that use telemedicine
medical services must provide notice of how patients may file a complaint
with the Board on the physician's website or with informed consent
materials provided to patients prior to rendering telemedicine medical
services. Written content and method of the notice must be consistent
with §178.3 of this title (relating to Complaint Procedure Notification).
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Source Note: The provisions of this §174.5 adopted to be effective July 4, 2004, 29 TexReg 6088; amended to be effective October 17, 2010, 35 TexReg 9085; amended to be effective June 4, 2015, 40 TexReg 3148 |