Introduced By: Senators Oster and McDonald
Date Introduced : February 10, 1998
It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:
SECTION 1. Section 9-19-27 of the General Laws in Chapter 9-19 entitled "Evidence " is hereby amended to read as follows:
9-19-27. Evidence of charges for medical and hospital services and for prescriptions and orthopedic appliances -- Evidence required from hospital medical records. -- (a) In any proceeding commenced in any court, commission, or agency, an itemized bill and reports, whether originating within this state or any other state, including hospital medical records, relating to medical, dental, hospital services, prescriptions, or orthopedic appliances rendered to or prescribed for a person injured, and/or any report of any examination of the injured person, including, but not limited to, hospital medical records subscribed and sworn to under the penalties of perjury by the physician, dentist, or authorized agent of the hospital rendering the services or by the pharmacist or retailer of orthopedic appliances, shall be admissible as evidence of the fair and reasonable charge for the services and/or the necessity of the services or treatment, the diagnosis of the physician or dentist, the prognosis of the physician or dentist; the opinion of the physician or dentist as to proximate cause of the condition so diagnosed, and the opinion of the physician or dentist as to disability or incapacity, if any, proximately resulting from the condition so diagnosed; and, provided, further, that written notice of the intention to offer the bill or report as such evidence, together with a copy thereof, has been given to the opposing party or parties, or to his or her or their attorneys, by mailing the notice by certified mail, return receipt requested, not less than ten (10) days before the introduction of the bill or report into evidence, and that an affidavit of the notice and the return receipt is filed with the clerk of the court forthwith after the receipt has been returned. Nothing contained in this section shall be construed to limit the right of any party to the action to summon or depose, at his or her own expense, the physician, dentist, pharmacist, retailer of orthopedic appliances, or agent of the hospital for the purpose of cross examination with respect to the bill, record, and report or to rebut the contents thereof, or for any other purpose, nor to limit the right of any party to the action to summon or depose any other person to testify in respect to the bill, record, and/or report or for any other purpose.
(b) The words "physician", and "dentist" shall not include any person who is not licensed to practice as such under the laws of the jurisdiction within which the services were rendered, but shall include chiropodists, chiropractors, optometrists, osteopaths, physical therapists, psychologists, and other medical personnel licensed to practice under title 5 or under the laws of the jurisdiction within which the services were rendered.
(c) The word "hospital" shall mean any hospital required to incorporate under title 7, or which is in any way licensed or regulated by the laws of any other state, or by the laws and regulations of the United States, including hospitals of the veterans administration or similar type institutions, whether incorporated or not.
{ADD (d) Any party objecting to the admitting into evidence of the affidavit shall file an objection specifying the grounds thereof within ten (10) days of receipt of the affidavit, or said objections are waived. ADD}
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.
