Child abuse reporting: availability of information.

Existing law requires the Department of Justice to maintain an index of all reports of child abuse and severe neglect submitted by agencies mandated to make those reports. Existing law requires the Department of Justice to notify an agency that submits a child abuse report, or a prosecutor who requests notification, of any information maintained in the index that is relevant to the known or suspected instance of child abuse or severe neglect reported by the agency. Existing law further requires that the relevant agency, as specified, make this information available to the appropriate licensing agency, as specified, as well as to the reporting medical practitioner, child custodian, guardian ad litem, or appointed counsel, if he or she is treating or investigating a case of known or suspected child abuse or severe neglect. This bill would provide that this information be made available, instead of to the reporting medical practitioner, to the reporting health care practitioner, and would provide that the information be made available to the health care practitioner only if he or she is treating a person reported as a possible victim of known or suspected child abuse. The bill would make other conforming changes.