| (a) A physician, dentist, veterinarian, chiropractor,
advanced practice nurse, physician assistant, or person permitted
by law to attend a pregnant woman during gestation or at the delivery
of an infant shall report, as required by these sections, each patient
(person or animal) he or she shall examine and who has or is suspected
of having any notifiable condition, and shall report any outbreak,
exotic disease, or unusual group expression of illness of any kind
whether or not the disease is known to be communicable or reportable.
An employee from the clinic or office staff may be designated to serve
as the reporting officer. A physician, dentist, veterinarian, advanced
practice nurse, physician assistant, or chiropractor who can assure
that a designated or appointed person from the clinic or office is
regularly reporting every occurrence of these diseases or health conditions
in their clinic or office does not have to submit a duplicate report.
(b) The chief administrative officer of a hospital
shall appoint one reporting officer who shall be responsible for reporting
each patient who is medically attended at the facility and who has
or is suspected of having any notifiable condition. Hospital laboratories
may report through the reporting officer or independently in accordance
with the hospital's policies and procedures.
(c) Except as provided in subsection (b) of this section,
any person who is in charge of a clinical laboratory, blood bank,
mobile unit, or other facility in which a laboratory examination of
any specimen derived from a human body yields microscopic, bacteriologic,
virologic, parasitologic, serologic, or other evidence of a notifiable
condition, shall report as required by this section.
(d) School authorities, including a superintendent,
principal, teacher, school health official, or counselor of a public
or private school and the administrator or health official of a public
or private institution of higher learning should report as required
by these sections those students attending school who are suspected
of having a notifiable condition. School administrators who are not
medical directors meeting the criteria described in §97.132 of
this title (relating to Who Shall Report Sexually Transmitted Diseases)
are exempt from reporting sexually transmitted diseases.
(e) Any person having knowledge that a person(s) or
animal(s) is suspected of having a notifiable condition should notify
the local health authority or the department and provide all information
known to them concerning the illness and physical condition of such
person(s) or animal(s).
(f) Sexually transmitted diseases including HIV and
AIDS shall be reported in accordance with Subchapter F of this chapter
(relating to Sexually Transmitted Diseases Including Acquired Immunodeficiency
Syndrome (AIDS) and Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)).
(g) Failure to report a notifiable condition is a Class
B misdemeanor under the Texas Health and Safety Code, §81.049.
(h) The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability
Act (HIPAA) allows reporting without authorization for public health
purposes and where required by law. Title 45 Code of Federal Regulations §164.512(a)
and (b).
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| Source Note: The provisions of this §97.2 adopted to be effective March 16, 1994, 19 TexReg 1453; amended to be effective March 5, 1998, 23 TexReg 1954; amended to be effective January 1, 1999, 23 TexReg 12663; amended to be effective March 26, 2000, 25 TexReg 2343; amended to be effective December 20, 2000, 25 TexReg 12426; amended to be effective August 5, 2001, 26 TexReg 5658; amended to be effective June 5, 2007, 32 TexReg 2997; amended to be effective December 20, 2012, 37 TexReg 9777; amended to be effective April 3, 2016, 41 TexReg 2317 |
