§ 130A-12. Confidentiality of records.
§ 130A‑12. Confidentiality of records.
All records containingprivileged patient medical information, information protected under 45 Code ofFederal Regulations Parts 160 and 164, and information collected under theauthority of Part 4 of Article 5 of this Chapter that are in the possession ofthe Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Environment andNatural Resources, or local health departments shall be confidential and shallnot be public records pursuant to G.S. 132‑1. Information contained inthe records may be disclosed only when disclosure is authorized or required byState or federal law. Notwithstanding G.S. 8‑53 or G.S. 130A‑143,the information contained in the records may be disclosed for purposes oftreatment, payment, or health care operations. For purposes of this section,the terms "treatment," "payment," and "health careoperations" have the meanings given those terms in 45 Code of FederalRegulations § 164.501. (1985, c. 470, s. 2; 1991 (Reg. Sess., 1992), c. 890, s. 9; 1995, c.428, s. 1.1; 2004‑80, s. 4; 2006‑255, s. 13.2.)