By Capelo                                             H.B. No. 3600
         Line and page numbers may not match official copy.
         Bill not drafted by TLC or Senate E&E.
                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 1-1                                   AN ACT
 1-2     relating to the compliance monitoring of physicians by the Texas
 1-3     State Board of Medical Examiners.
 1-4           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
 1-5           SECTION 1. Section 160.006, Occupations Code, is amended as
 1-6     follows:
 1-7           Sec. 160.006.  Board Confidentiality. (a)  A record, report,
 1-8     or other information received and maintained by the board under
 1-9     this subchapter or Subchapter B including any material received or
1-10     developed by the board during an investigation [or] hearing, or
1-11     compliance monitoring, is confidential.  The board may disclose
1-12     this information only:
1-13                 (1)  in a disciplinary hearing before the board or in a
1-14     subsequent trial or appeal of a board action or order;
1-15                 (2)  to the physician licensing or disciplinary
1-16     authority of another jurisdiction, to a local, state, or national
1-17     professional medical society or association, or to a medical peer
1-18     committee located inside or outside this state that is concerned
1-19     with granting, limiting, or denying a physician hospital
1-20     privileges;
1-21                 (3)  under a court order; or
1-22                 (4)  to qualified personnel for bona fide research or
1-23     educational purposes, if personally identifiable information
 2-1     relating to any physician or other individual is first deleted.
 2-2           (b)  Any known hospital suspension of a physician for a term
 2-3     of 30 days or longer relating to the physician's competence and a
 2-4     disciplinary order of the board against a physician are not
 2-5     confidential.
 2-6           (c)  A record or report disclosed by the board under this
 2-7     subchapter and a record or report received, maintained, or
 2-8     developed by the board, a medical peer review committee, a member
 2-9     of the committee, or a health care entity are not available for
2-10     discovery or court subpoena and may not be introduced into evidence
2-11     in any action for damages, including a medical professional
2-12     liability action that arises out of the provision of or failure to
2-13     provide a medical or health care service.
2-14           SECTION 2.  Section 164.007. Occupations Code is amended to
2-15     read as follows.
2-16           Sec. 164.007.  Administrative Hearings; Confidentiality
2-17     Issues.
2-18           (c)  Each complaint, adverse report, investigation file,
2-19     other investigation report, compliance file, and other
2-20     investigative information in the possession of or received or
2-21     gathered by the board or its employees or agents relating to a
2-22     license holder, an application for license, or a criminal
2-23     investigation or proceeding is privileged and confidential and is
2-24     not subject to discovery, subpoena, or other means of legal
2-25     compulsion for release to anyone other than the board or its
2-26     employees or agents involved in discipline of a license holder.
 3-1           SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
 3-2     a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
 3-3     provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.  If this
 3-4     Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
 3-5     Act takes effect September 1, 2001.