CHAPTER 595. RECORDS
HEALTH AND SAFETY CODE
TITLE 7. MENTAL HEALTH AND MENTAL RETARDATION
SUBTITLE D. PERSONS WITH MENTAL RETARDATION ACT
CHAPTER 595. RECORDS
Sec. 595.001. CONFIDENTIALITY OF RECORDS. Records of the
identity, diagnosis, evaluation, or treatment of a person that
are maintained in connection with the performance of a program or
activity relating to mental retardation are confidential and may
be disclosed only for the purposes and under the circumstances
authorized under Sections 595.003 and 595.004.
Added by Acts 1991, 72nd Leg., ch. 76, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1,
1991.
Sec. 595.002. RULES. The board shall adopt rules to carry out
this chapter that the department considers necessary or proper
to:
(1) prevent circumvention or evasion of the chapter; or
(2) facilitate compliance with the chapter.
Added by Acts 1991, 72nd Leg., ch. 76, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1,
1991.
Sec. 595.003. CONSENT TO DISCLOSURE. (a) The content of a
confidential record may be disclosed in accordance with the prior
written consent of:
(1) the person about whom the record is maintained;
(2) the person's parent if the person is a minor;
(3) the guardian if the person has been adjudicated incompetent
to manage the person's personal affairs; or
(4) if the person is dead:
(A) the executor or administrator of the deceased's estate; or
(B) if an executor or administrator has not been appointed, the
deceased's spouse or, if the deceased was not married, an adult
related to the deceased within the first degree of consanguinity.
(b) Disclosure is permitted only to the extent, under the
circumstances, and for the purposes allowed under department
rules.
Added by Acts 1991, 72nd Leg., ch. 76, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1,
1991.
Sec. 595.004. RIGHT TO PERSONAL RECORD. (a) The content of a
confidential record shall be made available on the request of the
person about whom the record was made unless:
(1) the person is a client; and
(2) the qualified professional responsible for supervising the
client's habilitation states in a signed written statement that
having access to the record is not in the client's best interest.
(b) The parent of a minor or the guardian of the person shall be
given access to the contents of any record about the minor or
person.
Added by Acts 1991, 72nd Leg., ch. 76, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1,
1991.
Sec. 595.005. EXCEPTIONS. (a) The content of a confidential
record may be disclosed without the consent required under
Section 595.003 to:
(1) medical personnel to the extent necessary to meet a medical
emergency;
(2) qualified personnel for management audits, financial audits,
program evaluations, or research approved by the department; or
(3) personnel legally authorized to conduct investigations
concerning complaints of abuse or denial of rights of persons
with mental retardation.
(b) A person who receives confidential information under
Subsection (a)(2) may not directly or indirectly identify a
person receiving services in a report of the audit, evaluation,
or research, or otherwise disclose any identities.
(c) The department may disclose without the consent required
under Section 595.003 a person's educational records to a school
district that provides or will provide educational services to
the person.
(d) If authorized by an appropriate order of a court of
competent jurisdiction granted after application showing good
cause, the content of a record may be disclosed without the
consent required under Section 595.003. In determining whether
there is good cause, a court shall weigh the public interest and
need for disclosure against the injury to the person receiving
services. On granting the order, the court, in determining the
extent to which any disclosure of all or any part of a record is
necessary, shall impose appropriate safeguards against
unauthorized disclosure.
Added by Acts 1991, 72nd Leg., ch. 76, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1,
1991.
Sec. 595.0055. DISCLOSURE OF NAME AND BIRTH AND DEATH DATES FOR
CERTAIN PURPOSES. (a) In this section, "cemetery organization"
and "funeral establishment" have the meanings assigned by Section
711.001.
(b) Notwithstanding any other law, on request by a
representative of a cemetery organization or funeral
establishment, the superintendent of a residential care facility
shall release to the representative the name, date of birth, or
date of death of a person who was a resident at the facility when
the person died, unless the person or the person's guardian
provided written instructions to the facility not to release the
person's name or dates of birth and death. A representative of a
cemetery organization or a funeral establishment may use a name
or date released under this subsection only for the purpose of
inscribing the name or date on a grave marker.
Added by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 174, Sec. 2, eff. May 27,
2003.
Sec. 595.006. USE OF RECORD IN CRIMINAL PROCEEDINGS. Except as
authorized by a court order under Section 595.005, a confidential
record may not be used to:
(1) initiate or substantiate a criminal charge against a person
receiving services; or
(2) conduct an investigation of a person receiving services.
Added by Acts 1991, 72nd Leg., ch. 76, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1,
1991.
Sec. 595.007. CONFIDENTIALITY OF PAST SERVICES. The prohibition
against disclosing information in a confidential record applies
regardless of when the person received services.
Added by Acts 1991, 72nd Leg., ch. 76, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1,
1991.
Sec. 595.008. EXCHANGE OF RECORDS. The prohibitions against
disclosure apply to an exchange of records between government
agencies or persons, except for exchanges of information
necessary for:
(1) delivery of services to clients; or
(2) payment for mental retardation services as defined in this
subtitle.
Added by Acts 1991, 72nd Leg., ch. 76, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1,
1991.
Sec. 595.009. RECEIPT OF INFORMATION BY PERSONS OTHER THAN
CLIENT OR PATIENT. (a) A person who receives information that
is confidential under this chapter may not disclose the
information except to the extent that disclosure is consistent
with the authorized purposes for which the information was
obtained.
(b) This section does not apply to the person about whom the
record is made, or the parent, if the person is a minor, or the
guardian of the person.
Added by Acts 1991, 72nd Leg., ch. 76, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1,
1991.
Sec. 595.010. DISCLOSURE OF PHYSICAL OR MENTAL CONDITION. This
chapter does not prohibit a qualified professional from
disclosing the current physical and mental condition of a person
with mental retardation to the person's parent, guardian,
relative, or friend.
Added by Acts 1991, 72nd Leg., ch. 76, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1,
1991.