It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

SECTION 1. Section 5-37-30 of the General Laws in Chapter 5-37 entitled "BOARD OF MEDICAL LICENSURE AND DISCIPLINE" is hereby amended to read as follows:

{DEL 5-37-30 Deceased or retired physicians -- Preservation of records. -- DEL} {DEL (a) Upon the request of any retired physician or the heirs or estate of any deceased physician, the medical records, reports, and patient billings of the retired or deceased physician shall be stored and maintained at the state records center or any other central records repository to be determined by the public records administrator. The physician, his or her heirs or estate shall, within ninety (90) days of retirement or death, give legal notice as to the disposition of his medical records to patients in a newspaper with a circulation in the locality of the physician's practice and shall notify the Rhode Island Medical Society as to the location of the records. DEL}

{DEL (b) The public records administrator shall cause to be released the medical records, reports and/or patient billings of a deceased or retired physician upon the written request of a patient, his or her authorized representative, heirs or estate only to a designated physician, except as provided under section 5-37.3-4 of the Confidentiality of Health Care Information Act. Nothing in this section shall countermand any provisions of the Mental Health Law (Chapter 5 of title 40.1) or any federal alcoholism treatment statutes regarding release of confidential information and records. The designated physician receiving confidential health care information may disclose any or all information on the record to those persons who requested the transfer, as said physician deems in his or her professional judgment to be in the best interest of the patient to whom such information relates. DEL}

{DEL (c) Records control schedules shall be established for the retention and/or disposal of records of deceased or retired physicians as provided by the Rhode Island public records administration act (chapter 3 of title 38); provided that records are maintained at least until the applicable statute of limitations has expired. DEL}

{DEL (d) Photographic copies or other existing duplicates of records of a deceased or retired physician as designated by the public records administrator may be accepted for storage, maintenance or release in place of the original records. Any costs incurred by the state for duplicating such records shall be paid by the physician, his or her heirs or estate. DEL}

{DEL (e) The public records administrator shall require the retired physician or the heirs or estate of a deceased physician to pay a reasonable fee for storing and maintaining the documents described in subsection (a). The public records administrator shall also require the person requesting the records to pay a reasonable fee for providing the requested documents. The fee for such services shall be established by the public records advisory council and shall be paid into a rotary fund to be used to defer the cost of storage and maintenance of said records. DEL}

{ADD 5-37-30. Closure of medical practice -- Preservation of records. -- ADD} {ADD (a) A physician shall, at least ninety (90) days preceding closure of his or her practice, give public notice as to the disposition of patients' medical records in a newspaper with a statewide circulation and notify the Rhode Island Medical Society and Rhode Island Board of Medical Licensure and Discipline of the location of the records. The public notice shall include the date of the physician's retirement, and where and how patients may obtain their records both prior to and after closure of the physician's practice. ADD}

{ADD (b) The heirs or estate of a deceased physician who had been practicing at the time of his or her death shall, within ninety (90) days of the physician's death, give public notice as to the disposition of patients' medical records in a newspaper with a statewide circulation and shall notify the Rhode Island Medical Society and Rhode Island Board of Medical Licensure and Discipline of the location of the records. ADD}

{ADD (c) Any physician closing his or her practice, or the heirs or estate of a deceased physician who had been practicing at the time of his or her death, shall dispose of such physician's patient records in a location and manner such that the records are maintained and are accessible to patients. ADD}

{ADD (d) Any person or corporation or other legal entity receiving medical records of any retired physician or deceased physician who had been practicing at the time of his or her death shall comply with and be subject to the provisions of chapter 5-37.3, the Confidentiality of Health Care Information Act, and shall be subject to the rules and regulations promulgated in accordance with section 23-1-48 and with the provisions of section 5-37-22(c) and (d), even though such person, corporation or other legal entity is not a physician. ADD}

SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.