Virginia Code 54.1-2523: Confidentiality of data; disclosure of information; discretionary authority of Director
A. All data, records, and reports relating to the prescribing and dispensing of covered substances to recipients and any abstracts from such data, records, and reports that are in the possession of the Prescription Monitoring Program pursuant to this chapter and any material relating to the operation or security of the program shall be confidential and shall be exempt from the Virginia Freedom of Information Act (§ 2.2-3700 et seq.) pursuant to subdivision 2 of § 2.2-3705.5. Records in possession of the Prescription Monitoring Program shall not be available for civil subpoena, nor shall such records be disclosed, discoverable, or compelled to be produced in any civil proceeding, nor shall such records be deemed admissible as evidence in any civil proceeding for any reason. Further, the Director shall only have discretion to disclose any such information as provided in subsections B and C.
Terms Used In Virginia Code 54.1-2523
- Allegation: something that someone says happened.
- Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
- City: means an independent incorporated community which became a city as provided by law before noon on July 1, 1971, or which has within defined boundaries a population of 5,000 or more and which has become a city as provided by law. See Virginia Code 1-208
- Controlled substance: means a drug, substance or immediate precursor in Schedules I through VI of the Drug Control Act, Chapter 34 (§ Virginia Code 54.1-2519
- Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
- Department: means the Virginia Department of Health Professions. See Virginia Code 54.1-2519
- Director: means the Director of the Virginia Department of Health Professions. See Virginia Code 54.1-2519
- Discovery: Lawyers' examination, before trial, of facts and documents in possession of the opponents to help the lawyers prepare for trial.
- Dispenser: means a person or entity that (i) is authorized by law to dispense a covered substance or to maintain a stock of covered substances for the purpose of dispensing, and (ii) dispenses the covered substance to a citizen of the Commonwealth regardless of the location of the dispenser, or who dispenses such covered substance from a location in Virginia regardless of the location of the recipient. See Virginia Code 54.1-2519
- Docket: A log containing brief entries of court proceedings.
- Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
- Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
- Freedom of Information Act: A federal law that mandates that all the records created and kept by federal agencies in the executive branch of government must be open for public inspection and copying. The only exceptions are those records that fall into one of nine exempted categories listed in the statute. Source: OCC
- Person: includes any individual, corporation, partnership, association, cooperative, limited liability company, trust, joint venture, government, political subdivision, or any other legal or commercial entity and any successor, representative, agent, agency, or instrumentality thereof. See Virginia Code 1-230
- Prescriber: means a practitioner licensed in the Commonwealth who is authorized pursuant to §§ Virginia Code 54.1-2519
- Probation: A sentencing alternative to imprisonment in which the court releases convicted defendants under supervision as long as certain conditions are observed.
- Recipient: means a person who receives a covered substance from a dispenser and includes the owner of an animal patient. See Virginia Code 54.1-2519
- State: when applied to a part of the United States, includes any of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the United States Virgin Islands. See Virginia Code 1-245
- Subpoena: A command to a witness to appear and give testimony.
- Town: means any existing town or an incorporated community within one or more counties which became a town before noon, July 1, 1971, as provided by law or which has within defined boundaries a population of 1,000 or more and which has become a town as provided by law. See Virginia Code 1-254
- Trial: A hearing that takes place when the defendant pleads "not guilty" and witnesses are required to come to court to give evidence.
B. Upon receiving a request for information in accordance with the Department‘s regulations and in compliance with applicable federal law and regulations, the Director shall disclose the following:
1. Information relevant to a specific investigation of a specific recipient or of a specific dispenser or prescriber to an agent who has completed the Virginia State Police Drug Diversion School designated by the superintendent of the Department of State Police or designated by the chief law-enforcement officer of any county, city, or town or campus police department to conduct drug diversion investigations pursuant to § 54.1-3405.
2. Information relevant to an investigation or inspection of or allegation of misconduct by a specific person licensed, certified, or registered by or an applicant for licensure, certification, or registration by a health regulatory board; information relevant to a disciplinary proceeding before a health regulatory board or in any subsequent trial or appeal of an action or board order to designated employees of the Department of Health Professions; or to designated persons operating the Health Practitioners’ Monitoring Program pursuant to Chapter 25.1 of Title 19.2.
4. Information relevant to a specific investigation of a specific recipient, dispenser, or prescriber to an agent of a federal law-enforcement agency with authority to conduct drug diversion investigations.
5. Information relevant to a specific investigation, supervision, or monitoring of a specific recipient for purposes of the administration of criminal justice pursuant to Chapter 1 of Title 9.1 to a probation or parole officer as described in Article 2 (§ 53.1-141 et seq.) of Chapter 4 of Title 53.1, a local community-based probation officer as described in § 9.1-176.1, a drug court administrator as described in § 18.2-254.1, or a behavioral health docket administrator as described in § 18.2-254.3 who has completed the Virginia State Police Drug Diversion School designated by the Director of the Department of Corrections or his designee.
6. Information relevant to a specific investigation of a specific individual into a possible delivery of a controlled substance in violation of § 18.2-474.1 to an investigator for the Department of Corrections who has completed the Virginia State Police Drug Diversion School and who has been designated by the Director of the Department of Corrections or his designee.
7. Information about a specific recipient to the Smartchart Network Program in accordance with subdivision B 7 of § 32.1-372.
C. In accordance with the Department’s regulations and applicable federal law and regulations, the Director may, in his discretion, disclose:
1. Information in the possession of the Prescription Monitoring Program concerning a recipient who is over the age of 18 to that recipient. The information shall be mailed to the street or mailing address indicated on the recipient request form.
2. Information on a specific recipient to a prescriber, as defined in this chapter, for the purpose of establishing the treatment history of the specific recipient when such recipient is either under care and treatment by the prescriber or the prescriber is consulting on or initiating treatment of such recipient. In a manner specified by the Director in regulation, notice shall be given to patients that information may be requested by the prescriber from the Prescription Monitoring Program.
3. Information on a specific recipient to a dispenser for the purpose of establishing a prescription history to assist the dispenser in (i) determining the validity of a prescription in accordance with § 54.1-3303 or (ii) providing clinical consultation on the care and treatment of the recipient. In a manner specified by the Director in regulation, notice shall be given to patients that information may be requested by the dispenser from the Prescription Monitoring Program.
4. Information relevant to an investigation or regulatory proceeding of a specific dispenser or prescriber to other regulatory authorities concerned with granting, limiting or denying licenses, certificates or registrations to practice a health profession when such regulatory authority licenses such dispenser or prescriber or such dispenser or prescriber is seeking licensure by such other regulatory authority.
5. Information relevant to an investigation relating to a specific dispenser or prescriber who is a participating provider in the Virginia Medicaid program or information relevant to an investigation relating to a specific recipient who is currently eligible for and receiving or who has been eligible for and has received medical assistance services to the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit of the Office of the Attorney General or to designated employees of the Department of Medical Assistance Services, as appropriate.
6. Information relevant to determination of the cause of death of a specific recipient to the designated employees of the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner.
7. Information for the purpose of bona fide research or education to qualified personnel; however, data elements that would reasonably identify a specific recipient, prescriber, or dispenser shall be deleted or redacted from such information prior to disclosure. Further, release of the information shall only be made pursuant to a written agreement between such qualified personnel and the Director in order to ensure compliance with this subdivision.
8. Information relating to prescriptions for covered substances issued by a specific prescriber, which have been dispensed and reported to the Prescription Monitoring Program, to that prescriber.
9. Information about a specific recipient who is a member of a Virginia Medicaid managed care program to a physician or pharmacist licensed in the Commonwealth and employed by the Virginia Medicaid managed care program or to his clinical designee who holds a multistate licensure privilege to practice nursing or a license issued by a health regulatory board within the Department of Health Professions and is employed by the Virginia Medicaid managed care program. Such information shall only be used to determine eligibility for and to manage the care of the specific recipient in a Patient Utilization Management Safety or similar program. Notice shall be given to recipients that information may be requested by a licensed physician or pharmacist employed by the Virginia Medicaid managed care program from the Prescription Monitoring Program.
10. [Expired.]
11. Information about a specific recipient who is currently eligible for and receiving medical assistance from the Department of Medical Assistance Services to a physician or pharmacist licensed in the Commonwealth or to his clinical designee who holds a multistate licensure privilege to practice nursing or a license issued by a health regulatory board within the Department of Health Professions and is employed by the Department of Medical Assistance Services.
Such information shall be used only to determine eligibility for and to manage the care of the specific recipient in a Patient Utilization Management Safety or similar program. Notice shall be given to recipients that information may be requested by a licensed physician or pharmacist employed by the Department of Medical Assistance Services from the Prescription Monitoring Program.
D. The Director may enter into agreements for mutual exchange of information among prescription monitoring programs in other jurisdictions, which shall only use the information for purposes allowed by this chapter.
E. This section shall not be construed to supersede the provisions of § 54.1-3406 concerning the divulging of confidential records relating to investigative information.
F. Confidential information that has been received, maintained or developed by any board or disclosed by the board pursuant to subsection A shall not, under any circumstances, be available for discovery or court subpoena or introduced into evidence in any medical malpractice suit or other action for damages arising out of the provision of or failure to provide services. However, this subsection shall not be construed to inhibit any investigation or prosecution conducted pursuant to Article 1 (§ 18.2-247 et seq.) of Chapter 7 of Title 18.2.
2002, c. 481; 2004, c. 690; 2005, cc. 637, 678; 2009, cc. 158, 162, 472; 2012, cc. 21, 71; 2013, c. 739; 2014, cc. 12, 97; 2015, cc. 118, 507; 2016, cc. 309, 410, 447, 568; 2017, cc. 186, 778; 2018, c. 108; 2019, c. 679; 2020, cc. 1066, 1067; 2023, cc. 628, 629; 2024, c. 33.