NOTE: §2024.5 as enacted by Acts 2021, No. 320, eff. upon availability of sufficient funding by nongovernmental sources or by specific legislative appropriation.

§2024.5. Records; confidentiality; prohibited disclosure and discovery

            A. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, the review panel, or any local or regional panel or agent of a local or regional panel, shall be authorized to access medical and vital records in the custody of physicians, hospitals, clinics, other healthcare providers, and the office of public health, and any other information, documents, or records pertaining to the completed investigation of any domestic abuse fatality in the custody of any law enforcement agency in order that it may perform its functions and duties as provided in this Section.

            B. The review panel, or any local or regional panel or agent of a local or regional panel, may request from a person, agency, or entity any relevant information, whether written or oral, to carry out its functions and duties. This information may include but is not limited to the following:

            (1) Medical information.

            (2) Mental health information.

            (3) Information from elder abuse reports and investigation reports which exclude the identity of persons who have made a report and shall not be disclosed.

            (4) Information from child abuse reports and investigations which exclude the identity of persons who have made a report and shall not be disclosed.

            (5) Summary of criminal history, criminal offender record, and local criminal history.

            (6) Information pertaining to reports by healthcare providers of persons suffering from physical injuries inflicted by means of a firearm or of persons suffering physical injury where the injury is a result of abusive conduct.

            (7) Information concerning a juvenile court proceeding.

            (8) Information maintained by a family court or the office of vital records.

            (9) Information provided by probation officers in the course of the performance of their duties including but not limited to the duty to prepare reports as well as the information on which these reports are based.

            (10) Records of in-home supportive services unless disclosure is prohibited by federal law.

            C. The review panel, or any local or regional panel or agent of a local or regional panel, may make a request in writing for the information sought and any person, agency, or entity with information may rely on the request to determine whether information may be disclosed. A person, agency, or entity that has the information and is governed by this Section shall not be required to disclose the information. The intent of this Section is to allow the voluntary disclosure of information by a person, agency, or entity that has the information.

            D. Except as provided in this Subsection, information and records obtained by the review panel, or any local or regional panel or agent of a local or regional panel, in accordance with the provisions of this Section, or results of any domestic abuse fatality report, shall be confidential and shall not be available for subpoena nor shall the information be disclosed, discoverable, or compelled to be produced in any civil, criminal, administrative, or other proceeding, nor shall the records be deemed admissible as evidence in any civil, criminal, administrative, or other tribunal or court of any reason. Information and records presented to the review panel, or any local or regional panel or agent of a local or regional panel, shall not be immune from subpoena, discovery, or prohibited from being introduced into evidence solely because they were presented to or reviewed by the review panel, or any local or regional panel or agent of a local or regional panel, if the information and records have been obtained from other sources.

            E. Any person, agency, or entity furnishing information, documents, and reports in accordance with this Section shall not be liable for the disclosure and shall not be considered in violation of any privileged or confidential relationship, if the person, agency, or entity has acted in good faith in the reporting pursuant to this Section.

            F. A member of the review panel, or any local or regional panel or agent of a local or regional panel, may not disclose any information that is confidential under this Section. A person who appears before, participates in, or provides information to the review panel, or any local or regional panel or agent of a local or regional panel, shall sign a confidentiality notice to acknowledge that any information he provides to the review panel, or any local or regional panel or agent of a local or regional panel, shall be confidential. Information identifying a victim of domestic violence whose case is being reviewed, or that victim's family members, or an alleged or suspected perpetrator of abuse upon the victim, or regarding the involvement of any agency with the victim or victim's family members, shall not be disclosed in any report that is available to the public. Nothing in this Section shall prohibit the publishing by the review panel, or any local or regional panel or agent of a local or regional panel, of statistical compilations relating to domestic abuse fatalities which do not identify a person's case or person's healthcare provider, law enforcement agency, or organization who provides services to victims.

            G. When the review panel, or any local or regional panel or agent of a local or regional panel, concludes a review of a domestic abuse fatality or other review, it shall return all information and records that concern a victim or the victim's family members to the person, agency, or entity that furnished the information.

            Acts 2021, No. 320, §2, See Act.