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H.F No. 2619, as introduced: 82nd Legislative Session (2001-2002) Posted
on Dec 10, 2001
1.1 A bill for an act
1.2 relating to public health; establishing the State
1.3 Emergency Health Powers Act; requiring reporting of
1.4 certain illnesses and health conditions; specifying
1.5 standards for declaring a state of public health
1.6 emergency; authorizing special powers for the control
1.7 of property and persons; requiring the dissemination
1.8 of information and planning; establishing enforcement
1.9 authority; providing for rulemaking; providing
1.10 criminal penalties; appropriating money; amending
1.11 Minnesota Statutes 2000, sections 12.31, by adding a
1.12 subdivision; 13.3806, by adding a subdivision; 144.99,
1.13 subdivision 1; 147.091, subdivision 1; 148.261,
1.14 subdivision 1; proposing coding for new law as
1.15 Minnesota Statutes, chapter 145D.
1.16 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:
1.17 ARTICLE 1
1.18 TITLE, FINDINGS, PURPOSES, AND DEFINITIONS
1.19 Section 1. [SHORT TITLE.]
1.20 This act may be cited as the "State Emergency Health Powers
1.21 Act."
1.22 Sec. 2. [LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS.]
1.23 The legislature finds that:
1.24 (1) the government must do more to protect the health,
1.25 safety, and general well-being of our citizens;
1.26 (2) new and emerging dangers, including emergent and
1.27 resurgent infectious diseases and incidents of civilian mass
1.28 casualties, pose serious and immediate threats;
1.29 (3) a renewed focus on the prevention, detection,
1.30 management, and containment of public health emergencies is
2.1 called for;
2.2 (4) emergency health threats, including those caused by
2.3 bioterrorism and epidemics, require the exercise of
2.4 extraordinary government functions;
2.5 (5) Minnesota must have the ability to respond, rapidly and
2.6 effectively, to potential or actual public health emergencies;
2.7 (6) the exercise of emergency health powers must promote
2.8 the common good;
2.9 (7) emergency health powers must be grounded in a thorough
2.10 scientific understanding of public health threats and disease
2.11 transmission;
2.12 (8) guided by principles of justice, it is the duty of this
2.13 state to act with fairness and tolerance towards individuals and
2.14 groups;
2.15 (9) the rights of people to liberty, bodily integrity, and
2.16 privacy must be respected to the fullest extent possible
2.17 consistent with the overriding importance of the public's health
2.18 and security; and
2.19 (10) this act is necessary to protect the health and safety
2.20 of the citizens of Minnesota.
2.21 Sec. 3. [PURPOSES.]
2.22 The purposes of this act are to:
2.23 (1) authorize the collection of data and records, the
2.24 control of property, the management of persons, and access to
2.25 communications;
2.26 (2) facilitate the early detection of a health emergency
2.27 and allow for immediate investigation of such an emergency by
2.28 granting access to individuals' health information under
2.29 specified circumstances;
2.30 (3) grant state officials the authority to use and
2.31 appropriate property as necessary for the care, treatment, and
2.32 housing of patients and for the destruction of contaminated
2.33 materials;
2.34 (4) grant state officials the authority to provide care and
2.35 treatment to persons who are ill or who have been exposed to
2.36 infection and to separate affected individuals from the
3.1 population at large to interrupt the transmission of infectious
3.2 disease;
3.3 (5) ensure that the needs of infected or exposed persons
3.4 will be addressed to the fullest extent possible, given the
3.5 primary goal of controlling serious health threats;
3.6 (6) provide state officials with the ability to prevent,
3.7 detect, manage, and contain emergency health threats without
3.8 unduly interfering with civil rights and liberties; and
3.9 (7) require the development of a comprehensive plan to
3.10 provide for a coordinated, appropriate response in the event of
3.11 a public health emergency.
3.12 Sec. 4. [145D.01] [DEFINITIONS.]
3.13 Subdivision 1. [APPLICATION.] For purposes of this
3.14 chapter, the following definitions apply.
3.15 Subd. 2. [BIOTERRORISM.] "Bioterrorism" means the
3.16 intentional use of any of the following to cause death, disease,
3.17 or other biological malfunction in a human, an animal, a plant,
3.18 or another living organism to influence the conduct of
3.19 government or to intimidate or coerce a civilian population: a
3.20 microorganism, virus, infectious substance, or biological
3.21 product that may be engineered as a result of biotechnology, or
3.22 any naturally occurring or bioengineered component of any such
3.23 microorganism, virus, infectious substance, or biological
3.24 product.
3.25 Subd. 3. [CHAIN OF CUSTODY.] "Chain of custody" means the
3.26 methodology of tracking specimens to maintain control and
3.27 accountability from initial collection to final disposition of
3.28 the specimens and to provide for accountability at each stage of
3.29 collecting, handling, testing, storing, and transporting the
3.30 specimens and reporting test results.
3.31 Subd. 4. [CONTAGIOUS DISEASE.] "Contagious disease" means
3.32 an infectious disease that can be transmitted from person to
3.33 person, animal to person, or insect to person.
3.34 Subd. 5. [HEALTH CARE FACILITY.] "Health care facility"
3.35 means any nonfederal, public or private, for-profit or nonprofit
3.36 institution, building, or agency or portion thereof that is
4.1 used, operated, or designed to provide health services, medical
4.2 treatment, or nursing, rehabilitative, or preventive care to any
4.3 person. Health care facility includes, but is not limited to,
4.4 ambulatory surgical facilities, home health agencies, hospices,
4.5 hospitals, infirmaries, intermediate care facilities, kidney
4.6 treatment centers, medical clinics, mental health centers,
4.7 outpatient facilities, public health centers, rehabilitation
4.8 facilities, regional treatment centers, nursing homes,
4.9 supervised living facilities, housing with services
4.10 establishments, and adult day care centers. Health care
4.11 facility also includes, but is not limited to, the following
4.12 related property when used for or in connection with the
4.13 foregoing: laboratories; research facilities; pharmacies;
4.14 laundry facilities; health personnel training and lodging
4.15 facilities; patient, guest, and health personnel food service
4.16 facilities; and offices and office buildings for persons engaged
4.17 in health care professions or services.
4.18 Subd. 6. [HEALTH CARE PROVIDER.] "Health care provider"
4.19 means any person or entity who provides health care services
4.20 including, but not limited to, hospitals, medical clinics and
4.21 offices, special care facilities, physicians, pharmacists,
4.22 dentists, physician assistants, nurses, emergency medical
4.23 technicians, paramedics, laboratory technicians, and ambulance
4.24 workers.
4.25 Subd. 7. [INFECTIOUS DISEASE.] "Infectious disease" means
4.26 a disease caused by a living organism. An infectious disease
4.27 may or may not be transmissible from person to person, animal to
4.28 person, or insect to person.
4.29 Subd. 8. [INFECTIOUS WASTE.] "Infectious waste" means:
4.30 (1) blood and blood products, excretions, exudates,
4.31 secretions, suctioning and other body fluids, waste materials
4.32 saturated with blood or body fluids, and other biological waste;
4.33 (2) etiologic agents and associated biologicals, including
4.34 specimen cultures and dishes and devices used to transfer,
4.35 inoculate, and mix cultures; wastes from the production of
4.36 biologicals and serums; discarded live and attenuated vaccines;
5.1 and other cultures and stocks;
5.2 (3) biopsy materials; human tissues and anatomical parts
5.3 that emanate from surgery, obstetrical procedures, autopsies,
5.4 and laboratory procedures; animal carcasses exposed to pathogens
5.5 in research and the bedding and other waste from such animals;
5.6 and other pathological waste, but does not include teeth or
5.7 formaldehyde or other preservative agents; and
5.8 (4) needles, intravenous tubing with needles attached,
5.9 scalpel blades, lancets, glass tubes that could be broken during
5.10 handling, syringes that have been removed from their original
5.11 sterile containers, and other sharps.
5.12 Subd. 9. [MEDICAL LABORATORY.] "Medical laboratory" means
5.13 a facility that receives, forwards, or analyzes specimens of
5.14 original material from the human body or referred cultures of
5.15 specimens obtained from the human body and reports the results
5.16 to health care providers who use the data for patient care.
5.17 Subd. 10. [PROTECTED HEALTH INFORMATION.] "Protected
5.18 health information" means information in any form that relates
5.19 to an individual's past, present, or future physical or mental
5.20 health status, condition, treatment, service, products
5.21 purchased, or provision of care, and that reveals
5.22 characteristics that could reasonably be used to identify the
5.23 individual whose health care is the subject of the information.
5.24 Subd. 11. [PUBLIC HEALTH AUTHORITY.] "Public health
5.25 authority" means the commissioner of health or a local
5.26 government agency with express delegated authority from the
5.27 commissioner of health to act for the commissioner in cases of
5.28 public health emergency.
5.29 Subd. 12. [PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCY.] "Public health
5.30 emergency" means an occurrence or an imminent threat of the
5.31 occurrence of a qualifying illness or health condition.
5.32 Subd. 13. [PUBLIC SAFETY AUTHORITY.] "Public safety
5.33 authority" means the commissioner of public safety or any local
5.34 government agency that acts principally to protect or preserve
5.35 the public safety.
5.36 Subd. 14. [QUALIFYING ILLNESS OR HEALTH CONDITION.]
6.1 "Qualifying illness or health condition" means an illness or
6.2 health condition, caused by bioterrorism, epidemic or pandemic
6.3 disease, natural disaster, or a novel and highly fatal
6.4 infectious agent or biological toxin, that poses a substantial
6.5 risk of a significant number of human fatalities, incidents of
6.6 acute short-term illness, or incidents of permanent or long-term
6.7 disability. Qualifying illnesses and health conditions include,
6.8 but are not limited to, smallpox; the diseases required to be
6.9 reported under Minnesota Rules, part 4605.7040; and any other
6.10 illnesses or health conditions designated by the public health
6.11 authority.
6.12 Subd. 15. [QUARANTINE.] "Quarantine" means the compulsory
6.13 physical separation, including the restriction of movement or
6.14 confinement, of individuals or groups of individuals believed to
6.15 have been exposed to or known to have been infected with a
6.16 contagious disease from individuals believed not to have been
6.17 exposed or infected, in order to prevent or limit the
6.18 transmission of the disease to others.
6.19 Subd. 16. [SPECIMEN.] "Specimen" means any of the
6.20 following items that are necessary to perform required tests:
6.21 bodily fluids, including but not limited to blood, sputum, and
6.22 urine; bodily wastes; tissues; DNA and RNA samples; and cultures.
6.23 Subd. 17. [TEST.] "Test" means any diagnostic or
6.24 investigative analysis necessary to prevent the spread of
6.25 disease or protect the public's health, safety, and welfare.
6.26 ARTICLE 2
6.27 MEASURES TO DETECT AND TRACK POTENTIAL AND EXISTING PUBLIC
6.28 HEALTH EMERGENCIES
6.29 Section 1. Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 13.3806, is
6.30 amended by adding a subdivision to read:
6.31 Subd. 21. [PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCY.] Data held by the
6.32 public health authority in preparation for or in response to a
6.33 public health emergency are classified in section 145D.04,
6.34 subdivision 3. Sharing of such data is governed by section
6.35 145D.04, subdivision 4. Access to and disclosure of a patient's
6.36 protected health information is governed by section 145D.22.
7.1 Sec. 2. [145D.02] [REPORTING QUALIFYING ILLNESSES AND
7.2 HEALTH CONDITIONS.]
7.3 Subdivision 1. [REPORTING REQUIRED.] A physician, nurse,
7.4 coroner, or medical examiner shall report to a public health
7.5 authority all cases, suspected cases, or deaths of persons who
7.6 harbor a qualifying illness or health condition.
7.7 Subd. 2. [HEALTH CARE FACILITIES.] A health care facility
7.8 must either:
7.9 (1) designate that all individual physicians and nurses at
7.10 the health care facility must report as specified in subdivision
7.11 1; or
7.12 (2) designate a single person or group of persons as
7.13 responsible for reporting as specified in subdivision 1.
7.14 Subd. 3. [MANNER OF REPORTING.] A report required under
7.15 subdivision 1 must be made in writing within 24 hours to the
7.16 public health authority, except that a report of a case or
7.17 suspected case required to be reported immediately by telephone
7.18 under Minnesota Rules, part 4605.7040, must be so reported. A
7.19 report must include as much of the following information as is
7.20 available:
7.21 (1) the disease;
7.22 (2) the date of first symptoms;
7.23 (3) primary signs and symptoms;
7.24 (4) the patient's name, date of birth, sex, race, current
7.25 address including city and county, telephone number, and place
7.26 of work, school, or child care;
7.27 (5) the name and address of the physician, nurse, coroner,
7.28 or medical examiner and of the reporting individual, if
7.29 different;
7.30 (6) the name of the hospital, if any;
7.31 (7) diagnostic laboratory findings and dates of tests;
7.32 (8) any other information needed to locate the patient for
7.33 follow-up; and
7.34 (9) for cases related to animal or insect bites, suspected
7.35 locating information for the biting animal or insect and the
7.36 name and address of any known owner.
8.1 Subd. 4. [REPORTING REQUIRED BY PHARMACISTS.] (a) A
8.2 pharmacist shall report any unusual or increased prescription
8.3 rates, unusual types of prescriptions being filled, or unusual
8.4 trends in pharmacy visits that may be caused by a qualifying
8.5 illness or health condition. Prescription-related events that
8.6 require a report include, but are not limited to:
8.7 (1) an unusual increase in the number of prescriptions to
8.8 treat fever, respiratory, or gastrointestinal complaints;
8.9 (2) an unusual increase in the number of prescriptions for
8.10 antibiotics;
8.11 (3) an unusual increase in the number of requests for
8.12 information on over-the-counter pharmaceuticals to treat fever,
8.13 respiratory, or gastrointestinal complaints; and
8.14 (4) any prescription that treats a disease that is
8.15 relatively uncommon and may have been caused by bioterrorism.
8.16 (b) A report required under this subdivision must be made
8.17 in writing to the public health authority within 24 hours of the
8.18 identification of a prescription-related event that requires a
8.19 report.
8.20 Subd. 5. [REPORTING OF ANIMAL DISEASES.] Every
8.21 veterinarian, livestock owner, veterinary diagnostic laboratory
8.22 director, or other person having the care of animals shall
8.23 report any case or suspected case of an animal having any
8.24 disease that may be caused by bioterrorism, epidemic or pandemic
8.25 disease, or novel and highly fatal infectious agents or
8.26 biological toxins and that might pose a substantial risk of a
8.27 significant number of human and animal fatalities, incidents of
8.28 acute short-term illness in humans or animals, or incidents of
8.29 permanent or long-term disability in humans or animals. A
8.30 report required under this subdivision must be made in writing
8.31 within 24 hours to the public health authority and must include
8.32 as much of the following information as is available:
8.33 (1) the disease;
8.34 (2) the date of first symptoms;
8.35 (3) primary signs and symptoms;
8.36 (4) the suspected locating information for the animal;
9.1 (5) the name and address of any known owner; and
9.2 (6) the name and address of the reporting individual.
9.3 Subd. 6. [MEDICAL LABORATORIES.] A medical laboratory in
9.4 this state that performs a test that indicates the presence of
9.5 any qualifying illness or health condition must report the
9.6 results of the test in writing to the public health authority
9.7 within 24 hours of the test's completion. If a medical
9.8 laboratory in this state sends a specimen to an out-of-state
9.9 medical laboratory for testing and if the test indicates the
9.10 presence of a qualifying illness or health condition, the
9.11 medical laboratory in this state is responsible for reporting
9.12 the test results to the public health authority. An
9.13 out-of-state medical laboratory may report such test results as
9.14 specified in this subdivision if the laboratory agrees to the
9.15 reporting requirements of this section. A report under this
9.16 subdivision must include as much of the information listed under
9.17 subdivision 3 as is known by the medical laboratory.
9.18 Subd. 7. [ENFORCEMENT.] (a) If the public health authority
9.19 learns that a physician or nurse has failed to report as
9.20 required under this section, the public health authority may
9.21 report that physician or nurse to the professional's licensing
9.22 board. The board of medical practice shall enforce the
9.23 reporting requirements of this section against physicians as
9.24 specified in section 147.141. The board of nursing shall
9.25 enforce the reporting requirements of this section against
9.26 nurses as specified in section 148.262.
9.27 (b) The commissioner of health shall discipline, including
9.28 suspending or revoking the license of, any health care facility
9.29 that fails to comply with the requirements of subdivision 2, if
9.30 the commissioner has jurisdiction over the licensing of the
9.31 health care facility at issue.
9.32 Sec. 3. [145D.03] [IDENTIFICATION AND DISEASE
9.33 SURVEILLANCE.]
9.34 Subdivision 1. [GENERAL.] The public health authority
9.35 shall ascertain the existence of cases or suspected cases of a
9.36 qualifying illness or health condition; investigate all such
10.1 cases or suspected cases for sources of infection and to ensure
10.2 that they are subject to proper control measures; and define the
10.3 distribution of the qualifying illness or health condition.
10.4 Subd. 2. [IDENTIFICATION AND INTERVIEWING OF INDIVIDUALS.]
10.5 Acting on reports received according to section 145D.02 or other
10.6 reliable information, a public health authority shall identify
10.7 all individuals with cases or suspected cases of a qualifying
10.8 illness or health condition. The public health authority shall
10.9 counsel and interview such individuals as appropriate to assist
10.10 in the positive identification of exposed individuals and shall
10.11 develop information on the source and spread of the qualifying
10.12 illness or health condition. The information to be developed
10.13 shall include, but is not limited to, the name and address,
10.14 including city and county, of any person from whom the
10.15 qualifying illness or health condition may have been contracted
10.16 and to whom the qualifying illness or health condition may have
10.17 spread.
10.18 Subd. 3. [EXAMINATION OF FACILITIES OR MATERIALS.] A
10.19 public health authority shall, for examination purposes, close,
10.20 evacuate, or decontaminate any facility or decontaminate or
10.21 destroy any material when the public health authority reasonably
10.22 suspects that such facility or material may endanger the public
10.23 health.
10.24 Subd. 4. [ENFORCEMENT.] The public safety authority shall
10.25 immediately enforce an order of a public health authority that
10.26 is made under this section to identify or conduct surveillance
10.27 regarding an individual with a case or suspected case of a
10.28 qualifying illness or health condition or to examine or destroy
10.29 a facility or material.
10.30 Sec. 4. [145D.04] [INFORMATION SHARING.]
10.31 Subdivision 1. [PUBLIC SAFETY AUTHORITY.] Whenever the
10.32 public safety authority learns of a case or suspected case of a
10.33 qualifying illness or health condition, an unusual cluster, or a
10.34 suspicious event that it reasonably believes has the potential
10.35 to be caused by bioterrorism, it shall immediately notify the
10.36 public health authority.
11.1 Subd. 2. [PUBLIC HEALTH AUTHORITY.] Whenever the public
11.2 health authority learns of a case or suspected case of a
11.3 qualifying illness or health condition, an unusual cluster, or a
11.4 suspicious event that it reasonably believes has the potential
11.5 to be caused by bioterrorism, it shall immediately notify the
11.6 appropriate public safety authority, tribal authorities, and
11.7 federal health and public safety authorities.
11.8 Subd. 3. [CLASSIFICATION OF DATA.] The following data held
11.9 by the public health authority are private data on individuals
11.10 or nonpublic data:
11.11 (1) local, state, and federal government plans to prepare
11.12 for and respond to public health emergencies, including
11.13 department of health response plans, laboratory protocols, and
11.14 plans covering contingency operations and back-up staffing;
11.15 (2) a report by any person of a case or suspected case of a
11.16 qualifying illness or health condition;
11.17 (3) contact information used to notify appropriate local,
11.18 state, and federal public safety authorities, local and federal
11.19 public health authorities, health care providers, and others of
11.20 cases or suspected cases of a qualifying illness or health
11.21 condition;
11.22 (4) names and contact information allowing the public
11.23 health authority to access restricted information regarding the
11.24 public health emergency preparedness or response plan of a
11.25 medical laboratory, health care provider, local government,
11.26 state government, federal government, international agency, or
11.27 public safety authority;
11.28 (5) information regarding an active epidemiologic
11.29 investigation of a case or suspected case of a qualifying
11.30 illness or health condition, including laboratory results,
11.31 epidemiologic or other health-related studies, and preliminary
11.32 analyses and alerts derived from the investigation;
11.33 (6) information on the kinds, amounts, location, security
11.34 protection, and shipment of vaccines and other biologics that
11.35 may be used to address a public health emergency; and
11.36 (7) information relating to quarantine, relocation,
12.1 evacuation, facility closure, or other emergency steps taken in
12.2 the event of a public health emergency.
12.3 Subd. 4. [DATA SHARING.] Notwithstanding the data
12.4 classification made in subdivision 3, the public health
12.5 authority may disclose information protected under subdivision 3
12.6 as necessary to treat, control, investigate, or prevent a public
12.7 health emergency.
12.8 Sec. 5. Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 147.091,
12.9 subdivision 1, is amended to read:
12.10 Subdivision 1. [GROUNDS LISTED.] The board may refuse to
12.11 grant a license or may impose disciplinary action as described
12.12 in section 147.141 against any physician. The following conduct
12.13 is prohibited and is grounds for disciplinary action:
12.14 (a) Failure to demonstrate the qualifications or satisfy
12.15 the requirements for a license contained in this chapter or
12.16 rules of the board. The burden of proof shall be upon the
12.17 applicant to demonstrate such qualifications or satisfaction of
12.18 such requirements.
12.19 (b) Obtaining a license by fraud or cheating, or attempting
12.20 to subvert the licensing examination process. Conduct which
12.21 subverts or attempts to subvert the licensing examination
12.22 process includes, but is not limited to: (1) conduct which
12.23 violates the security of the examination materials, such as
12.24 removing examination materials from the examination room or
12.25 having unauthorized possession of any portion of a future,
12.26 current, or previously administered licensing examination; (2)
12.27 conduct which violates the standard of test administration, such
12.28 as communicating with another examinee during administration of
12.29 the examination, copying another examinee's answers, permitting
12.30 another examinee to copy one's answers, or possessing
12.31 unauthorized materials; or (3) impersonating an examinee or
12.32 permitting an impersonator to take the examination on one's own
12.33 behalf.
12.34 (c) Conviction, during the previous five years, of a felony
12.35 reasonably related to the practice of medicine or osteopathy.
12.36 Conviction as used in this subdivision shall include a
13.1 conviction of an offense which if committed in this state would
13.2 be deemed a felony without regard to its designation elsewhere,
13.3 or a criminal proceeding where a finding or verdict of guilt is
13.4 made or returned but the adjudication of guilt is either
13.5 withheld or not entered thereon.
13.6 (d) Revocation, suspension, restriction, limitation, or
13.7 other disciplinary action against the person's medical license
13.8 in another state or jurisdiction, failure to report to the board
13.9 that charges regarding the person's license have been brought in
13.10 another state or jurisdiction, or having been refused a license
13.11 by any other state or jurisdiction.
13.12 (e) Advertising which is false or misleading, which
13.13 violates any rule of the board, or which claims without
13.14 substantiation the positive cure of any disease, or professional
13.15 superiority to or greater skill than that possessed by another
13.16 physician.
13.17 (f) Violating a rule promulgated by the board or an order
13.18 of the board, a state, or federal law which relates to the
13.19 practice of medicine, or in part regulates the practice of
13.20 medicine including without limitation sections 148A.02, 609.344,
13.21 and 609.345, or a state or federal narcotics or controlled
13.22 substance law.
13.23 (g) Engaging in any unethical conduct; conduct likely to
13.24 deceive, defraud, or harm the public, or demonstrating a willful
13.25 or careless disregard for the health, welfare or safety of a
13.26 patient; or medical practice which is professionally
13.27 incompetent, in that it may create unnecessary danger to any
13.28 patient's life, health, or safety, in any of which cases, proof
13.29 of actual injury need not be established.
13.30 (h) Failure to supervise a physician's assistant or failure
13.31 to supervise a physician under any agreement with the board.
13.32 (i) Aiding or abetting an unlicensed person in the practice
13.33 of medicine, except that it is not a violation of this paragraph
13.34 for a physician to employ, supervise, or delegate functions to a
13.35 qualified person who may or may not be required to obtain a
13.36 license or registration to provide health services if that
14.1 person is practicing within the scope of that person's license
14.2 or registration or delegated authority.
14.3 (j) Adjudication as mentally incompetent, mentally ill or
14.4 mentally retarded, or as a chemically dependent person, a person
14.5 dangerous to the public, a sexually dangerous person, or a
14.6 person who has a sexual psychopathic personality by a court of
14.7 competent jurisdiction, within or without this state. Such
14.8 adjudication shall automatically suspend a license for the
14.9 duration thereof unless the board orders otherwise.
14.10 (k) Engaging in unprofessional conduct. Unprofessional
14.11 conduct shall include any departure from or the failure to
14.12 conform to the minimal standards of acceptable and prevailing
14.13 medical practice in which proceeding actual injury to a patient
14.14 need not be established.
14.15 (l) Inability to practice medicine with reasonable skill
14.16 and safety to patients by reason of illness, drunkenness, use of
14.17 drugs, narcotics, chemicals or any other type of material or as
14.18 a result of any mental or physical condition, including
14.19 deterioration through the aging process or loss of motor skills.
14.20 (m) Revealing a privileged communication from or relating
14.21 to a patient except when otherwise required or permitted by law.
14.22 (n) Failure by a doctor of osteopathy to identify the
14.23 school of healing in the professional use of the doctor's name
14.24 by one of the following terms: osteopathic physician and
14.25 surgeon, doctor of osteopathy, or D.O.
14.26 (o) Improper management of medical records, including
14.27 failure to maintain adequate medical records, to comply with a
14.28 patient's request made pursuant to section 144.335 or to furnish
14.29 a medical record or report required by law.
14.30 (p) Fee splitting, including without limitation:
14.31 (1) paying, offering to pay, receiving, or agreeing to
14.32 receive, a commission, rebate, or remuneration, directly or
14.33 indirectly, primarily for the referral of patients or the
14.34 prescription of drugs or devices;
14.35 (2) dividing fees with another physician or a professional
14.36 corporation, unless the division is in proportion to the
15.1 services provided and the responsibility assumed by each
15.2 professional and the physician has disclosed the terms of the
15.3 division;
15.4 (3) referring a patient to any health care provider as
15.5 defined in section 144.335 in which the referring physician has
15.6 a significant financial interest unless the physician has
15.7 disclosed the physician's own financial interest; and
15.8 (4) dispensing for profit any drug or device, unless the
15.9 physician has disclosed the physician's own profit interest.
15.10 The physician must make the disclosures required in this clause
15.11 in advance and in writing to the patient and must include in the
15.12 disclosure a statement that the patient is free to choose a
15.13 different health care provider. This clause does not apply to
15.14 the distribution of revenues from a partnership, group practice,
15.15 nonprofit corporation, or professional corporation to its
15.16 partners, shareholders, members, or employees if the revenues
15.17 consist only of fees for services performed by the physician or
15.18 under a physician's direct supervision, or to the division or
15.19 distribution of prepaid or capitated health care premiums, or
15.20 fee-for-service withhold amounts paid under contracts
15.21 established under other state law.
15.22 (q) Engaging in abusive or fraudulent billing practices,
15.23 including violations of the federal Medicare and Medicaid laws
15.24 or state medical assistance laws.
15.25 (r) Becoming addicted or habituated to a drug or intoxicant.
15.26 (s) Prescribing a drug or device for other than medically
15.27 accepted therapeutic or experimental or investigative purposes
15.28 authorized by a state or federal agency or referring a patient
15.29 to any health care provider as defined in section 144.335 for
15.30 services or tests not medically indicated at the time of
15.31 referral.
15.32 (t) Engaging in conduct with a patient which is sexual or
15.33 may reasonably be interpreted by the patient as sexual, or in
15.34 any verbal behavior which is seductive or sexually demeaning to
15.35 a patient.
15.36 (u) Failure to make reports as required by section 147.111
16.1 or to cooperate with an investigation of the board as required
16.2 by section 147.131.
16.3 (v) Knowingly providing false or misleading information
16.4 that is directly related to the care of that patient unless done
16.5 for an accepted therapeutic purpose such as the administration
16.6 of a placebo.
16.7 (w) Aiding suicide or aiding attempted suicide in violation
16.8 of section 609.215 as established by any of the following:
16.9 (1) a copy of the record of criminal conviction or plea of
16.10 guilty for a felony in violation of section 609.215, subdivision
16.11 1 or 2;
16.12 (2) a copy of the record of a judgment of contempt of court
16.13 for violating an injunction issued under section 609.215,
16.14 subdivision 4;
16.15 (3) a copy of the record of a judgment assessing damages
16.16 under section 609.215, subdivision 5; or
16.17 (4) a finding by the board that the person violated section
16.18 609.215, subdivision 1 or 2. The board shall investigate any
16.19 complaint of a violation of section 609.215, subdivision 1 or 2.
16.20 (x) Practice of a board-regulated profession under lapsed
16.21 or nonrenewed credentials.
16.22 (y) Failure to repay a state or federally secured student
16.23 loan in accordance with the provisions of the loan.
16.24 (z) Failure to satisfy the reporting requirements in
16.25 section 145D.02.
16.26 Sec. 6. Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 148.261,
16.27 subdivision 1, is amended to read:
16.28 Subdivision 1. [GROUNDS LISTED.] The board may deny,
16.29 revoke, suspend, limit, or condition the license and
16.30 registration of any person to practice professional, advanced
16.31 practice registered, or practical nursing under sections 148.171
16.32 to 148.285, or to otherwise discipline a licensee or applicant
16.33 as described in section 148.262. The following are grounds for
16.34 disciplinary action:
16.35 (1) Failure to demonstrate the qualifications or satisfy
16.36 the requirements for a license contained in sections 148.171 to
17.1 148.285 or rules of the board. In the case of a person applying
17.2 for a license, the burden of proof is upon the applicant to
17.3 demonstrate the qualifications or satisfaction of the
17.4 requirements.
17.5 (2) Employing fraud or deceit in procuring or attempting to
17.6 procure a permit, license, or registration certificate to
17.7 practice professional or practical nursing or attempting to
17.8 subvert the licensing examination process. Conduct that
17.9 subverts or attempts to subvert the licensing examination
17.10 process includes, but is not limited to:
17.11 (i) conduct that violates the security of the examination
17.12 materials, such as removing examination materials from the
17.13 examination room or having unauthorized possession of any
17.14 portion of a future, current, or previously administered
17.15 licensing examination;
17.16 (ii) conduct that violates the standard of test
17.17 administration, such as communicating with another examinee
17.18 during administration of the examination, copying another
17.19 examinee's answers, permitting another examinee to copy one's
17.20 answers, or possessing unauthorized materials; or
17.21 (iii) impersonating an examinee or permitting an
17.22 impersonator to take the examination on one's own behalf.