Title: Parental Right to Know Act
Policy area: Health

Summary:
Parental Right to Know Act
This bill expands the scope of advance directive policies and related disclosures for providers under Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP).
Specifically, providers (e.g., hospitals, hospice programs, and home health care providers) must have advance directive policies for minors (rather than only adults). Providers must also disclose policies regarding parental access to a minor's medical records.

[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 207 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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117th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 207

   To amend titles XIX and XXI of the Social Security Act to require 
 hospitals and certain other participating providers under Medicaid or 
  the Children's Health Insurance Program to disclose the provider's 
  policy on parental access to the medical records of minors, and for 
                            other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            February 3, 2021

    Mr. Lee (for himself, Mr. Tillis, Mr. Braun, and Mr. Lankford) 
introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the 
                          Committee on Finance

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To amend titles XIX and XXI of the Social Security Act to require 
 hospitals and certain other participating providers under Medicaid or 
  the Children's Health Insurance Program to disclose the provider's 
  policy on parental access to the medical records of minors, and for 
                            other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Parental Right to Know Act''.

SEC. 2. PARENTAL ACCESS TO MEDICAL RECORDS DISCLOSURE REQUIREMENTS 
              UNDER MEDICAID AND CHIP.

    (a) Medicaid.--Section 1902(w) of the Social Security Act (42 
U.S.C. 1396a(w)) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (1)--
                    (A) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by 
                striking ``adult individuals receiving medical care by 
                or through the provider or organization'' and inserting 
                ``individuals receiving medical care by or through the 
                provider or organization, and in the case of any such 
                individual who is a minor individual (as defined in 
                paragraph (4)(B)), written policies and procedures with 
                respect to the parents and legal guardians of such an 
                individual''; and
                    (B) in subparagraph (A)--
                            (i) in clause (i), by striking ``, and'' 
                        and inserting a semicolon;
                            (ii) in clause (ii), by adding ``and'' 
                        after the semicolon; and
                            (iii) by inserting after clause (ii), the 
                        following:
                            ``(iii) the provider's or organization's 
                        written policies respecting parental access to 
                        the medical records of a minor individual;'';
            (2) in paragraph (2), by striking ``adult individual'' and 
        inserting ``individual, and in the case of a minor individual, 
        to at least 1 parent or legal guardian of the minor 
        individual'';
            (3) in paragraph (3), by striking ``section'' and inserting 
        ``subsection''; and
            (4) in paragraph (4)--
                    (A) by striking ``subsection, the term'' and 
                inserting ``subsection--
            ``(A) the term''; and
                    (B) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(B) the term `minor individual' means an individual who 
        is an unemancipated individual who has not attained 18 years of 
        age.''.
    (b) Application to CHIP.--Section 2107(e)(1) of the Social Security 
Act (42 U.S.C. 1397gg(e)(1)) is amended--
            (1) by redesignating subparagraphs (D) through (S) as 
        subparagraphs (E) through (T), respectively; and
            (2) by inserting after subparagraph (C) the following:
                    ``(D) Subsections (a)(57) and (w) of section 1902 
                (relating to maintenance of written policies and 
                procedures respecting advance directives and parental 
                access to the medical records of minor individuals).''.
    (c) Effective Date.--
            (1) In general.--Subject to paragraph (2), the amendments 
        made by this section shall apply to provider agreements entered 
        into or renewed on or after January 1, 2021.
            (2) Exception for state legislation.--In the case of a 
        State plan under title XIX or XXI of the Social Security Act 
        which the Secretary of Health and Human Services determines 
        requires State legislation (other than legislation 
        appropriating funds) in order for the plan to meet the 
        additional requirements imposed by the amendments made by this 
        section, the State plan shall not be regarded as failing to 
        comply with the requirements of such title solely on the basis 
        of its failure to meet these additional requirements before the 
        first day of the first calendar quarter beginning after the 
        close of the first regular session of the State legislature 
        that begins after the date of the enactment of this Act.
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