Prescription Record Privacy Act.

The Confidentiality of Medical Information Act prohibits a provider of health care, a health care service plan, contractor, or corporation and its subsidiaries and affiliates from intentionally sharing, selling, using for marketing, or otherwise using any medical information, as defined, for any purpose not necessary to provide health care services to a patient, unless a specified exception applies. This bill would enact the Prescription Record Privacy Act, prohibiting a person or entity, including a pharmacist, from selling or releasing to a 3rd party any physician prescribing data for marketing purposes, as defined, except when the data is necessary for any local, state, or federal governmental or oversight activity, as provided, or is necessary for the processing of a health care claim. The bill also would permit the release of physician prescribing data to a licensed health care professional, service plan, contractor, or facility, as provided, a health insurer or disability insurer, or an authorized operator of a program related to the treatment of chronic and seriously debilitating or life-threatening conditions. The bill would also permit the release of data for clinical trials or established research projects, as provided. This bill would also require that any person that knowingly fails to comply with these provisions be subject to an administrative penalty of at least $10,000 and not more than $50,000 per violation. This bill would authorize the Secretary of California Health and Human Services to adopt regulations to implement these provisions. This bill would require the office of the Attorney General to enforce payment of penalties for violations of these provisions, as provided. This bill would also authorize the Office of Health Information Integrity, upon receipt of a complaint of a violation of these provisions, to conduct an administrative hearing, in accordance with the administrative adjudication provisions set forth in the Administrative Procedure Act, and to assess an administrative fine against a person or entity found to have committed a violation of these provisions.