Sec. 7. (a) As soon as practicable following a patient’s admission to a hospital as an inpatient and before the patient’s discharge from the hospital to the patient’s residence or transfer to another facility, the hospital shall provide each patient or the patient’s health care representative with an opportunity to designate a lay caregiver. A patient or the patient’s health care representative may decline to designate a lay caregiver.

     (b) If a patient or the patient’s health care representative declines to designate a lay caregiver, or does not provide the written consent or the information described in subsection (c), the hospital shall document that fact in the patient’s medical record and the hospital is considered to have complied with the requirements of this chapter.

     (c) If a patient or the patient’s health care representative designates a lay caregiver, the hospital shall do the following:

(1) Request written consent by the patient or the patient’s health care representative to release medical information to the patient’s designated lay caregiver following the hospital’s procedures for releasing personal health information in compliance with federal and state laws.

(2) Record the following information in the patient’s medical record concerning the designated lay caregiver:

(A) The name, address, and telephone number of the designated lay caregiver.

(B) The relationship between the patient and the designated lay caregiver.

As added by P.L.137-2015, SEC.6.