reglab/statecodes huggingface dataset:
2023 Tennessee Code › Title 68 - HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-221-1319) › HEALTH (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-6-201) › Chapter 11 - HEALTH FACILITIES AND RESOURCES (§§ 68-11-101 — 68-11-2308) › Part 2 - REGULATION OF HEALTH AND RELATED FACILITIES (§§ 68-11-NEW — 68-11-277) › Section 68-11-254 - Information required to be posted in nursing homes

(a)
All nursing homes are required to post the following in the main public entrance to the facility:
(1)
The name of the administrator of the facility, and the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of any entity or company under contract to manage the facility, the state survey and certification agency, the state licensure office, the state ombudsman for the region where the facility is located, the protection and advocacy network, the statewide toll-free number of the division of adult protective services, and the state Medicaid fraud control unit;
(2)
A statement that the resident may file a complaint concerning abuse, neglect, exploitation, misappropriation of resident property in the facility, and noncompliance with the advance directives requirements with the state survey and certification agency; and that a resident may also seek assistance or file a complaint with the division of adult protective services;
(3)
(A)
A statement that the facility does not have:
(i)
A fire suppression sprinkler system throughout the facility;
(ii)
A smoke detector or alarm in each patient room; or
(iii)
Neither a fire suppression sprinkler system throughout the facility nor a smoke detector or alarm in each patient room;
(B)
Such signs shall be printed in not less than twenty-four-point type and, in addition to being displayed at the main public entrance, shall be prominently displayed at all entrances to the facility;
(C)
The requirements of this subdivision (a)(3) shall not apply to any nursing home that is fully sprinklered as of April 17, 2004; and
(4)
A statement indicating whether the facility has liability insurance and the identity of the primary insurance carrier. If the facility is self-insured, the statement shall reflect that fact and indicate the corporate entity responsible for payment of any claims.
(b)
The information listed in subsection (a) shall be posted on a sign no smaller than eleven inches (11") in width and seventeen inches (17") in height.
Acts 2000, ch. 826, § 1; 2004, ch. 451, §§ 3, 5; 2004, ch. 780, §§ 2, 3; 2005, ch. 184, § 1.
2023 Tennessee Code › Title 68 - HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-221-1319) › HEALTH (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-6-201) › Chapter 11 - HEALTH FACILITIES AND RESOURCES (§§ 68-11-101 — 68-11-2308) › Part 2 - REGULATION OF HEALTH AND RELATED FACILITIES (§§ 68-11-NEW — 68-11-277) › Section 68-11-258 - Internet posting of facilities and whether facilities have sprinklers, smoke detectors, or alarms

The health facilities commission shall post on the official state of Tennessee website on the internet (http://www.tn.gov) the names of every nursing home, residential home for the aged and assisted-care living facility regulated pursuant to this chapter and indicate whether the facility has a fire suppression sprinkler system throughout the facility or a smoke detector or alarm in each patient room.
Amended by 2023 Tenn. Acts, ch. 466, s 61, eff. 7/1/2024.
Acts 2004, ch. 451, § 4.
2023 Tennessee Code › Title 68 - HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-221-1319) › HEALTH (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-6-201) › Chapter 11 - HEALTH FACILITIES AND RESOURCES (§§ 68-11-101 — 68-11-2308) › Part 2 - REGULATION OF HEALTH AND RELATED FACILITIES (§§ 68-11-NEW — 68-11-277) › Section 68-11-259 - Establishment and maintenance of a trauma registry - Compliance - Confidentiality

(a)
The commission shall establish and maintain a central registry of persons who are treated for trauma at designated trauma centers or comprehensive regional pediatric centers (CRPCs). To further the purpose of this section, the commission has the authority to collect injury incidence information, including medical records and patient-identifying information, from designated trauma centers and CRPCs, analyze the information, and conduct special studies regarding the causes and consequences of traumatic injury. The commission also has the authority to promulgate rules and regulations in accordance with the Uniform Administrative Procedures Act, compiled in title 4, chapter 5, to administer the registry and its activities, which regulations may require the reporting trauma centers and CRPCs to use a particular form approved by the commission, and which regulations may prescribe penalties to be imposed for failure to abide by reporting requirements.
(b)
A hospital holding a trauma center or CRPC designation shall complete and submit the reports required by this section as a condition of continuing the designation.
(c)
No information contained in the trauma registry that reasonably could be expected to reveal the identity of any patient may be made available to the public, and no information contained in the trauma registry that reasonably could be expected to disclose the identity or identities of specific reporting facilities may be made available to the public. The information submitted to the commission pursuant to this section shall be used solely for the purpose of analyzing causes and medical consequences of serious trauma and promoting the continuum of care that provides timely and appropriate delivery of emergency medical treatment for people with acute traumatic injury; provided, however, that the specific information required by this section that pertains to health care professionals licensed under title 63 or this title, or health care facilities licensed under this title, shall be confidential, shall not be subject to public inspection, and shall not be used to initiate disciplinary complaints nor be admissible in any administrative proceeding for licensure discipline. The commission shall prescribe conditions under which the processed and verified data can be made available to the public.
(d)
No person or entity may be held liable in any civil action with respect to any report or disclosure of information made under this section, unless the person or entity has knowledge of any falsity of the information reported or disclosed.
Amended by 2023 Tenn. Acts, ch. 466, s 62, eff. 7/1/2024.
Acts 2005, ch. 206, § 1.
2023 Tennessee Code › Title 68 - HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-221-1319) › HEALTH (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-6-201) › Chapter 11 - HEALTH FACILITIES AND RESOURCES (§§ 68-11-101 — 68-11-2308) › Part 2 - REGULATION OF HEALTH AND RELATED FACILITIES (§§ 68-11-NEW — 68-11-277) › Section 68-11-260 - Electronic transmission of physician, advanced practice registered nurse, or physician assistant orders

A licensed home care organization is authorized to receive and appropriately act on a written order for a plan of care for a patient concerning a home health service signed by a physician, advanced practice registered nurse, or physician assistant that is transmitted to the licensed home care organization by electronically signed electronic mail. The order that is transmitted by electronic mail shall be deemed to meet any requirement for written documentation imposed by rule pursuant to this part.
Amended by 2021 Tenn. Acts, ch. 124, s 2, eff. 4/13/2021.
Acts 2005, ch. 231, § 1.
2023 Tennessee Code › Title 68 - HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-221-1319) › HEALTH (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-6-201) › Chapter 11 - HEALTH FACILITIES AND RESOURCES (§§ 68-11-101 — 68-11-2308) › Part 2 - REGULATION OF HEALTH AND RELATED FACILITIES (§§ 68-11-NEW — 68-11-277) › Section 68-11-261 - Emergency keyed lock boxes next to functioning elevators

(a)
Each hospital, recuperation center, nursing home, residential hospice, home for the aged, residential HIV supportive living facility, assisted-care living facility or ambulatory surgical treatment center licensed under this chapter, except those operated by the United States government, must ensure that an emergency keyed lock box is installed next to each bank of functioning elevators located on the main level. The lock boxes shall be permanently mounted seventy-two inches (72") from the floor to the center of the box, be operable by a universal key, no matter where the box is located, and shall contain only fire service keys and drop keys for the appropriate elevators. General standards for the design of such boxes shall be approved by the department of labor and workforce development; provided, however, that the standards must be consistent with all applicable building and life safety standards governing the facility.
(b)
Failure to comply with this section shall be a Class C misdemeanor, and shall be punishable by a fine only of not more than two hundred fifty dollars ($250).
Acts 2005, ch. 404, § 1.
2023 Tennessee Code › Title 68 - HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-221-1319) › HEALTH (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-6-201) › Chapter 11 - HEALTH FACILITIES AND RESOURCES (§§ 68-11-101 — 68-11-2308) › Part 2 - REGULATION OF HEALTH AND RELATED FACILITIES (§§ 68-11-NEW — 68-11-277) › Section 68-11-262 - Limit on amount of charges for services to an uninsured patient

(a)
Each healthcare facility licensed under this chapter shall be prohibited from requiring an uninsured patient to pay for services in an amount that exceeds one hundred seventy-five percent (175%) of the cost for the services provided, calculated using the cost to charge ratio in the most recent joint annual report.
(b)
As used in this section, the following terms shall have the meaning indicated:
(1)
"Cost to charge ratio" means the ratio of a specific healthcare facility's total expenses to its grand total gross patient charges as reported in its joint annual report submitted annually to the department of health;
(2)
"Healthcare facility" means a hospital, ambulatory surgery center, or outpatient diagnostic center; and
(3)
"Uninsured patient" means a person with no public or private source of payment for medical services, including, but not limited to, medicare, TennCare, a contract of insurance, an employer-sponsored health plan, or other enforceable obligation under which a person is responsible for payment for healthcare services provided to the patient.
(c)
Information obtained by the department of health as to the amounts billed for services by a healthcare facility, pursuant to this section, shall be maintained on a confidential basis.
Acts 2005, ch. 474, § 27; 2007, ch. 419, §§ 1, 2.
2023 Tennessee Code › Title 68 - HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-221-1319) › HEALTH (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-6-201) › Chapter 11 - HEALTH FACILITIES AND RESOURCES (§§ 68-11-101 — 68-11-2308) › Part 2 - REGULATION OF HEALTH AND RELATED FACILITIES (§§ 68-11-NEW — 68-11-277) › Section 68-11-263 - National nosocomial infection surveillance/national healthcare safety network (NNIS/NHSN)

(a)
Each facility regulated under this chapter with an annual average daily census of at least twenty-five (25) inpatients based on the most recent JAR public data, where applicable, or an outpatient facility that performs an annual average of twenty-five (25) procedures per day shall join the centers for disease control's national nosocomial infection surveillance/national healthcare safety network (NNIS/NHSN) surveillance system within one hundred twenty (120) days of when it becomes open to the facility's type of license in order to unify reporting systems and to benchmark against a national standard. Facilities shall meet data reporting timeframes as required by NHSN and shall utilize standard methods, including healthcare acquired case-finding techniques, CDC infection definitions and other relevant terms, and NHSN software for data collection and reporting. Data submitted by the reporting facility shall be reported without any patient identifiers.
(b)
(1)
Facilities shall grant the department of health access to the NHSN database on:
(A)
Central line associated bloodstream infections (CLABSI) in intensive care units for hospital specific reporting on the department of health's website. CLABSIs for burn units and Level 1 trauma units are excluded. The department shall disseminate the public reports based on data compiled for a period of twelve (12) months, no sooner than six (6) months but not later than eight (8) months following the month the facility reports the data. The reports shall be updated every six (6) months with the most recent four (4) quarters of data. The department shall only display facility specific rates for facilities with greater than thirty (30) central line insertions per year; and
(B)
Surgical site infections for coronary artery bypass grafts (CABG). On surgical site infections for CABG data, all facility identifiers shall be confidential and may not be released by the department. The department shall report only aggregate statewide performance on CABG surgical infection rates.
(2)
The department shall maintain the confidentiality of all medical record information abstracted by or reported to the agency. The department shall be granted initial access one (1) year after NHSN becomes open to facilities. Every six (6) months the department shall update information posted on the department's website received from the NHSN database authorized for public review.
Acts 2006, ch. 904, § 1.
2023 Tennessee Code › Title 68 - HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-221-1319) › HEALTH (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-6-201) › Chapter 11 - HEALTH FACILITIES AND RESOURCES (§§ 68-11-101 — 68-11-2308) › Part 2 - REGULATION OF HEALTH AND RELATED FACILITIES (§§ 68-11-NEW — 68-11-277) › Section 68-11-264 - Task force to clarify the interpretive guidelines for reporting unusual events with regard to Class I and Class II surgical site infections - Hospital-acquired infections

(a)
The commissioner of health shall establish a task force in order to clarify the interpretive guidelines for reporting unusual events with regard to Class I and Class II surgical site infections. The commissioner shall make appropriate appointments, including a chair, to the task force. The task force shall report to the commissioner on its progress no later than one (1) year after its appointment.
(b)
(1)
The committee established by the department of health to report in response to chapter 323 of the Public Acts of 2005 shall continue to meet at least biannually in order to evaluate the reporting of healthcare acquired infections and make recommendations to the department and the Tennessee improving patient safety coalition (TIPS) for improvements in patient safety efforts. The department shall consult with the committee and other bodies and individuals with recognized expertise to determine the manner in which data collected from healthcare facilities in the state shall be publicly reported. The database shall be organized and presented in a manner such that consumers, healthcare organizations, healthcare professionals, purchasers and payers may examine an individual facility's reporting of healthcare associated infection trends, and, where available, compare the information to statewide or national benchmarks. As national consensus standards for infection reporting are developed and published, the committee shall review these consensus standards and make additional recommendations. The department shall report to the Tennessee general assembly regarding recommendations for improvement on healthcare acquired infections and reporting requirements adopted by the subcommittee on infections and the TIPS committee. The report shall include the department's response.
(2)
The department of health is authorized to promulgate rules and regulations to update reporting requirements as recommended by the committee.
Acts 2006, ch. 904, § 2.
2023 Tennessee Code › Title 68 - HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-221-1319) › HEALTH (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-6-201) › Chapter 11 - HEALTH FACILITIES AND RESOURCES (§§ 68-11-101 — 68-11-2308) › Part 2 - REGULATION OF HEALTH AND RELATED FACILITIES (§§ 68-11-NEW — 68-11-277) › Section 68-11-265 - Use of information obtained by the department

Information obtained by the department from hospitals and other healthcare providers under §§
68-11-263
and
68-11-264
shall not be public information. Reports and studies prepared by the department based upon the information shall be public information and may identify individual healthcare entities. The department shall not release any patient level data. Data collected and reported pursuant to §§
68-11-263
and
68-11-264
shall not be deemed to have established a standard of care for any purposes of civil litigation in Tennessee, nor shall data reported pursuant to §§
68-11-263
and
68-11-264
by a specific healthcare facility be utilized in any civil litigation brought in Tennessee against the reporting facility.
Acts 2006, ch. 904, § 2.
2023 Tennessee Code › Title 68 - HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-221-1319) › HEALTH (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-6-201) › Chapter 11 - HEALTH FACILITIES AND RESOURCES (§§ 68-11-101 — 68-11-2308) › Part 2 - REGULATION OF HEALTH AND RELATED FACILITIES (§§ 68-11-NEW — 68-11-277) › Section 68-11-266 - Offering of immunization for influenza and pneumococcal diseases to inpatients sixty-five (65)

In accordance with the latest recommendations of the advisory committee on immunization practices of the centers for disease control, and subject to the availability of vaccine, each year from October 1 through March 1, prior to discharging any inpatient who is sixty-five (65) years of age or older, a hospital shall offer the inpatient immunization for influenza and pneumococcal diseases.
Acts 2007 , ch. 27, § 1.
2023 Tennessee Code › Title 68 - HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-221-1319) › HEALTH (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-6-201) › Chapter 11 - HEALTH FACILITIES AND RESOURCES (§§ 68-11-101 — 68-11-2308) › Part 2 - REGULATION OF HEALTH AND RELATED FACILITIES (§§ 68-11-NEW — 68-11-277) › Section 68-11-267 - Report on antibiotic resistant infections

(a)
The committee established by the department of health in response to chapter 323 of the Public Acts of 2005, known as the infections taskforce, shall continue to meet at least semiannually to focus on strategies and recommendations for the prevention and control of antibiotic resistant infections including methicillin resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). The taskforce, in collaboration with the division of communicable and environmental diseases of the department of health, shall review aggregate data on incidence and trends for invasive MRSA in Tennessee as reported to the department of health in accordance with §
68-1-104
in formulating their reports and recommendations.
(b)
The department of health and the infections taskforce shall collectively issue a progress report on MRSA to the general assembly each year for three (3) years beginning in 2008.
Acts 2007 , ch. 157, § 1.
2023 Tennessee Code › Title 68 - HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-221-1319) › HEALTH (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-6-201) › Chapter 11 - HEALTH FACILITIES AND RESOURCES (§§ 68-11-101 — 68-11-2308) › Part 2 - REGULATION OF HEALTH AND RELATED FACILITIES (§§ 68-11-NEW — 68-11-277) › Section 68-11-268 - Charity case policy

Each healthcare facility licensed under this chapter shall develop a concise statement of its charity care policies for use by members of the public so as to permit individuals to more accurately assess the potential cost for services provided at each institution. Every healthcare facility shall post this statement in a place accessible to the public.
Acts 2007, ch. 419, § 3.
2023 Tennessee Code › Title 68 - HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-221-1319) › HEALTH (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-6-201) › Chapter 11 - HEALTH FACILITIES AND RESOURCES (§§ 68-11-101 — 68-11-2308) › Part 2 - REGULATION OF HEALTH AND RELATED FACILITIES (§§ 68-11-NEW — 68-11-277) › Section 68-11-269 - Comprehensive infection control program - Admission or transfer of patients

(a)
Health care facilities, as part of their infection control program, shall perform a local risk assessment for methicillin resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in the facility. In those facilities where current interventions have not resulted in reduction in MRSA infections, implementation of a comprehensive program to reduce such infections should occur.
(b)
A health care facility's comprehensive infection control program may include, but is not limited to:
(1)
Implementation of a hand hygiene education and monitoring program;
(2)
The use of contact precautions for patients colonized or infected with MRSA;
(3)
The effective cleaning of patient care equipment and the patients' environment;
(4)
Consideration of use of active surveillance testing for high risk groups identified through a facility's local risk assessment to identify persons colonized with MRSA;
(5)
Feedback of surveillance data to key stakeholders, including senior facility leadership, physicians, nursing staff and other clinicians;
(6)
Education of healthcare personnel about epidemiologically significant organisms; and
(7)
Education of patients and families about prevention of healthcare-associated infections.
(c)
Hospitals, nursing homes and other health care facilities should communicate MRSA status of patients transferred or admitted to other facilities; however, facilities should not delay the admission or transfer of patients colonized with MRSA.
Acts 2008, ch. 999, § 1.
2023 Tennessee Code › Title 68 - HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-221-1319) › HEALTH (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-6-201) › Chapter 11 - HEALTH FACILITIES AND RESOURCES (§§ 68-11-101 — 68-11-2308) › Part 2 - REGULATION OF HEALTH AND RELATED FACILITIES (§§ 68-11-NEW — 68-11-277) › Section 68-11-273 - Licensing of traumatic brain injury residential homes

(a)
Traumatic brain injury residential homes shall be licensed by the commission and meet the standards prescribed in this part and in regulations promulgated by the commission pursuant to this part, unless the commission waives the same.
(b)
As a condition for licensure, a traumatic brain injury residential home provider shall provide community-based care for its residents in addition to residential care. During weekdays, the disabled adults residing in a traumatic brain injury residential home shall be provided day services through a separate facility licensed by the state. On weekends, the disabled adults shall participate in community activities, including, but not limited to, church attendance, visits to local parks, and other recreational activities of their choice or the choice of their family or legal representatives.
(c)
Traumatic brain injury residential home providers shall not be required to live in or employ a resident manager or substitute caregiver to live in a traumatic brain injury residential home. However, a traumatic brain injury residential home provider shall employ staff members to supervise the residents at all times within the residence, including overnights and during weekends. The staff members providing overnight care and/or supervision shall hold a national certification by the Academy of Certified Brain Injury Specialists as a Certified Brain Injury Specialist (CBIS), or hold a current professional license as a physician, nurse practitioner, registered nurse, licensed rehabilitation professional, or licensed mental health professional who is trained and experienced in the care and rehabilitation of residents with traumatic brain injury.
Amended by 2023 Tenn. Acts, ch. 466, s 65, eff. 7/1/2024.
Acts 2012, ch. 1086, § 3.
2023 Tennessee Code › Title 68 - HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-221-1319) › HEALTH (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-6-201) › Chapter 11 - HEALTH FACILITIES AND RESOURCES (§§ 68-11-101 — 68-11-2308) › Part 2 - REGULATION OF HEALTH AND RELATED FACILITIES (§§ 68-11-NEW — 68-11-277) › Section 68-11-274 - Provision of day services for residents as part of comprehensive services

As an alternative to the licensing condition of off-site day services established by §§
68-11-206(a)(2)(E)
and
68-11-273
, a traumatic brain injury residential home serving only private pay or private insurance clients may provide day services for its residents on site as part of its comprehensive services.
Acts 2012 , ch. 978, § 3.
2023 Tennessee Code › Title 68 - HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-221-1319) › HEALTH (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-6-201) › Chapter 11 - HEALTH FACILITIES AND RESOURCES (§§ 68-11-101 — 68-11-2308) › Part 2 - REGULATION OF HEALTH AND RELATED FACILITIES (§§ 68-11-NEW — 68-11-277) › Section 68-11-275 - Funding from the TennCare CHOICES program - Applicability of the Critical Adult Care Act of 2009

(a)
Nothing in this part, including the traumatic brain injury residential homes authorized by this part, shall entitle any traumatic brain injury residential home provider to funds from the TennCare CHOICES program or any successor to the TennCare program, other than those funds for which the provider or its residents are eligible separate and apart from this part.
(b)
The Critical Adult Care Home Act of 2009, as enacted by chapter 579 of the Public Acts of 2009, shall have no applicability to chapter 1086 of the Public Acts of 2012 unless it is specifically authorized in chapter 1086 of the Public Acts of 2012.
Acts 2012, ch. 1086, § 24.
2023 Tennessee Code › Title 68 - HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-221-1319) › HEALTH (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-6-201) › Chapter 11 - HEALTH FACILITIES AND RESOURCES (§§ 68-11-101 — 68-11-2308) › Part 2 - REGULATION OF HEALTH AND RELATED FACILITIES (§§ 68-11-NEW — 68-11-277) › Section 68-11-276 - Patient's right to receive visitation during period when COVID-19 is healthcare concern

(a)
As used in this section:
(1)
"Family member" means a spouse, parent, grandparent, stepmother, stepfather, child, grandchild, brother, sister, half-brother, half-sister, adopted child, or spouse's parent;
(2)
"Hospital" has the same meaning as defined in §
68-11-201
; and
(3)
"Patient representative" means a family member or another individual, chosen by a hospital patient, to act on behalf of the patient in order to support the patient in decision-making; access medical, social, or other personal information for or from the hospital; manage financial matters; or receive notifications.
(b)
(1)
A hospital shall implement written policies and procedures regarding the patient's right to receive visitation during a period when COVID-19 is a healthcare concern, including:
(A)
Policies and procedures setting forth any clinically necessary or reasonable restriction or limitation that the hospital may need to place on a patient's right to visitation; and
(B)
The reasons for the clinically necessary or reasonable restriction.
(2)
For purposes of allowing visitation during a period when COVID-19 is a healthcare concern, a hospital shall:
(A)
Inform the patient or patient representative of the patient's visitation rights, including any clinical restriction or limitation on such rights;
(B)
Inform the patient or patient representative of the right, subject to the patient's or patient representative's consent, to receive visitors whom the patient or patient representative designates and the patient's or patient representative's right to withdraw such consent at any time; and
(C)
Not restrict, limit, or deny visitation privileges on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sex, or disability.
(3)
A hospital shall not restrict a patient from having at least one (1) patient representative as a visitor during a period when COVID-19 is a healthcare concern, as long as the patient representative agrees to follow all safety protocols established by the hospital pursuant to this subsection (b), which must be clearly specified in writing and be no more restrictive than protocols applicable to staff of the hospital.
(4)
This subsection (b) does not preclude a hospital from placing limitations on the frequency and duration of visitation in areas of the hospital that necessitate a higher level of safety protocols.
Amended by 2022 Tenn. Acts, ch. 1073, s 3, eff. 5/25/2022.
2023 Tennessee Code › Title 68 - HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-221-1319) › HEALTH (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-6-201) › Chapter 11 - HEALTH FACILITIES AND RESOURCES (§§ 68-11-101 — 68-11-2308) › Part 3 - MEDICAL RECORDS ACT OF 1974 (§§ 68-11-301 — 68-11-314) › Section 68-11-301 - Short title

This part shall be known and may be cited as the "Medical Records Act of 1974."
Acts 1974, ch. 588, § 1; T.C.A. (orig. ed.), § 53-1319.
2023 Tennessee Code › Title 68 - HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-221-1319) › HEALTH (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-6-201) › Chapter 11 - HEALTH FACILITIES AND RESOURCES (§§ 68-11-101 — 68-11-2308) › Part 3 - MEDICAL RECORDS ACT OF 1974 (§§ 68-11-301 — 68-11-314) › Section 68-11-302 - Part definitions

As used in this part, unless the context otherwise requires:
(1)
"Board" means the board for licensing health care facilities, as established in §
68-11-203
;
(2)
"Business records" means all those books, ledgers, records, papers and other documents prepared, kept, made or received at hospitals that pertain to the organization, administration or management of the business and affairs of hospitals, but that do not constitute hospital records as defined in subdivision (5);
(3)
"Department" means the department of health;
(4)
"Hospital" means any institution, place, building or agency that has been licensed by the board, as defined in §
68-11-201
, or any clinic operated under the authority of a local or regional health department established under chapter 2, parts 6 and 7, of this title;
(5)
(A)
"Hospital records" means those medical histories, records, reports, summaries, diagnoses, prognoses, records of treatment and medication ordered and given, entries, X-rays, radiology interpretations, and other written, electronic, or graphic data prepared, kept, made or maintained in hospitals that pertain to hospital confinements or hospital services rendered to patients admitted to hospitals or receiving emergency room or outpatient care;
(B)
"Hospital records" also includes reductions of the original records upon photographic film of convenient size as provided in §
68-11-306
;
(C)
"Hospital records" do not, however, include ordinary business records pertaining to patients' accounts or the administration of the institution;
(6)
(A)
"Patient" includes, but is not limited to, outpatients, inpatients, persons dead on arrival, persons receiving emergency room care, and the newborn;
(B)
For the purposes of this part, an unborn fetus shall not be considered a patient, whether the result of miscarriage or abortion; and
(7)
"Retirement" means the withdrawal from current files of hospital records, business records, or parts thereof on or after the expiration of the applicable period of retention established pursuant to §
68-11-305
.
Acts 1974, ch. 588, § 2; 1980, ch. 706, § 1; T.C.A., § 53-1320; Acts 1993, ch. 127, § 1; 1995, ch. 257, § 1.
2023 Tennessee Code › Title 68 - HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-221-1319) › HEALTH (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-6-201) › Chapter 11 - HEALTH FACILITIES AND RESOURCES (§§ 68-11-101 — 68-11-2308) › Part 3 - MEDICAL RECORDS ACT OF 1974 (§§ 68-11-301 — 68-11-314) › Section 68-11-303 - Hospital's duty to keep records

(a)
All hospitals, their officers or employees, and medical and nursing personnel practicing in the hospitals, shall with reasonable promptness prepare, make and maintain true and accurate hospital records, including records pertaining to abortions as provided in §
39-15-203
, complying with the methods, minimum standards, and contents thereof as may be prescribed by rules and regulations adopted by the board.
(b)
The responsibility for supervision, filing and indexing of medical records shall be delegated to a responsible employee of the hospital.
Acts 1974, ch. 588, § 3; T.C.A., § 53-1321.
2023 Tennessee Code › Title 68 - HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-221-1319) › HEALTH (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-6-201) › Chapter 11 - HEALTH FACILITIES AND RESOURCES (§§ 68-11-101 — 68-11-2308) › Part 3 - MEDICAL RECORDS ACT OF 1974 (§§ 68-11-301 — 68-11-314) › Section 68-11-305 - Preservation of records for specified time - Method of destruction

(a)
(1)
Unless specified otherwise by the board, a hospital shall retain and preserve records that relate directly to the care and treatment of a patient for a period of ten (10) years following the discharge of the patient or such patient's death during such patient's period of treatment within the hospital.
(2)
In cases of patients under mental disability or minority, their complete hospital records shall be retained for the period of minority or known mental disability, plus one (1) year, or ten (10) years following the discharge of the patient, whichever is longer.
(b)
An X-ray film may be retired four (4) years after the date of exposure; provided, that the written findings or interpretations of a radiologist who has read the X-ray film signed by the radiologist shall be retained for the same period as other hospital records under subsection (a).
(c)
Notwithstanding any law or rule to the contrary, mammography records shall be retained for the same period as other hospital records under subsection (a).
(d)
(1)
Upon retirement of the record as provided in subsection (a), the record or any part of the retired record shall be destroyed by burning, shredding or other effective method in keeping with the confidential nature of its contents.
(2)
Destruction of records must be made in the ordinary course of business and no record shall be destroyed on an individual basis.
Amended by 2013 Tenn. Acts, ch. 113,s 1, eff. 4/12/2013.
Acts 1974, ch. 588, § 5; 1980, ch. 706, § 2; T.C.A., § 53-1323.
2023 Tennessee Code › Title 68 - HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-221-1319) › HEALTH (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-6-201) › Chapter 11 - HEALTH FACILITIES AND RESOURCES (§§ 68-11-101 — 68-11-2308) › Part 3 - MEDICAL RECORDS ACT OF 1974 (§§ 68-11-301 — 68-11-314) › Section 68-11-306 - Abstract prepared where required - Photographic reproductions - Reproduction considered original record

(a)
Before the hospital record is destroyed, the hospital shall cause an abstract to be made of any pertinent data, where so required by the rules and regulations of the board, or as the hospital in its discretion may find proper.
(b)
(1)
Any hospital may transfer and record upon photographic film of convenient size, such as microfilm, photograph or photostat, or upon nonerasable optical and electronic imaging technology, for the preservation thereof as evidence, pursuant to [former] §
24-7-110
[repealed], for the purposes of medical research and professional education, or administrative convenience, any or all of the original files and records of the hospital, dealing with case history, physical examination and daily hospital records of the individual patients thereof, including any miscellaneous documents, papers and correspondence in connection therewith.
(2)
The original documents so reproduced may be destroyed pursuant to the procedures set forth in §
68-11-305(c)
, and any such reproduction or copy of an original hospital record or part of an original hospital record shall be deemed to be the original hospital record or part of an original hospital record for all purposes, subject to retention and retirement as provided in §
68-11-305
and subsection (a).
Acts 1974, ch. 588, § 6; 1979, ch. 167, § 1; T.C.A., § 53-1324; Acts 1991, ch. 67, § 1; 1998, ch. 980, § 1.
2023 Tennessee Code › Title 68 - HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-221-1319) › HEALTH (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-6-201) › Chapter 11 - HEALTH FACILITIES AND RESOURCES (§§ 68-11-101 — 68-11-2308) › Part 3 - MEDICAL RECORDS ACT OF 1974 (§§ 68-11-301 — 68-11-314) › Section 68-11-307 - Continued storage of records

Any hospital may retain, preserve and store hospital records, either in the original or reproduced form, for such longer periods as in its discretion it may find proper, or as may be required by any court of competent jurisdiction.
Acts 1974, ch. 588, § 7; T.C.A., § 53-1325.
2023 Tennessee Code › Title 68 - HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-221-1319) › HEALTH (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-6-201) › Chapter 11 - HEALTH FACILITIES AND RESOURCES (§§ 68-11-101 — 68-11-2308) › Part 3 - MEDICAL RECORDS ACT OF 1974 (§§ 68-11-301 — 68-11-314) › Section 68-11-308 - Records of closed hospitals retained

(a)
If any hospital is finally closed, its hospital records shall be delivered and turned over, in good order and properly indexed for convenient reference, to the department, which shall store, retain, retire and provide access to the information in the same manner as is provided for by hospitals.
(b)
In its discretion, the department may also exercise like authority, and to the same effect, with respect to reproduction of such hospital records as is conferred in §
68-11-306
.
Acts 1974, ch. 588, § 8; T.C.A., § 53-1326.
2023 Tennessee Code › Title 68 - HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-221-1319) › HEALTH (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-6-201) › Chapter 11 - HEALTH FACILITIES AND RESOURCES (§§ 68-11-101 — 68-11-2308) › Part 3 - MEDICAL RECORDS ACT OF 1974 (§§ 68-11-301 — 68-11-314) › Section 68-11-309 - Retirement of hospital business records

(a)
Except as otherwise provided by law, order or decree of any court of competent jurisdiction, or applicable rules and regulations, any hospital may retire any business records at such times as in its judgment may conform to sound business practices and the reasonable accommodation of other interested parties.
(b)
Any hospital may, in its discretion, and at any time, cause any part of its business records to be reproduced as provided in §
68-11-306(b)
for hospital records; however, this shall not be construed to permit the destruction, retirement or earlier retirement of any business record that is otherwise prohibited by law.
Acts 1974, ch. 588, § 9; T.C.A., § 53-1327.
2023 Tennessee Code › Title 68 - HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-221-1319) › HEALTH (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-6-201) › Chapter 11 - HEALTH FACILITIES AND RESOURCES (§§ 68-11-101 — 68-11-2308) › Part 3 - MEDICAL RECORDS ACT OF 1974 (§§ 68-11-301 — 68-11-314) › Section 68-11-311 - Violations - Civil liability

(a)
A willful violation of this part is a Class C misdemeanor.
(b)
No hospital, its officers, employees, or medical and nursing personnel practicing in the hospital, shall be civilly liable for violation of this part, except to the extent of liability for actual damages in a civil action for willful or reckless or wanton acts or omissions constituting such violation. Such liability shall be subject, however, to any immunities or limitations of liability or damages provided by law.
Acts 1974, ch. 588, § 11; T.C.A., § 53-1329; Acts 1989, ch. 591, § 113.
2023 Tennessee Code › Title 68 - HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-221-1319) › HEALTH (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-6-201) › Chapter 11 - HEALTH FACILITIES AND RESOURCES (§§ 68-11-101 — 68-11-2308) › Part 3 - MEDICAL RECORDS ACT OF 1974 (§§ 68-11-301 — 68-11-314) › Section 68-11-312 - Communication between health care providers and their patients

(a)
It is the public policy of the state of Tennessee to promote effective communications between health care providers while rendering care to their patients.
(b)
(1)
There is no implied covenant of confidentiality or other restriction that precludes:
(A)
Health care providers from communicating with each other in the course of providing care and treatment to a patient; or
(B)
A health care provider from responding to a request from a hospital regarding entries in the patient's records of the requesting hospital made or reviewed by that health care provider during the course of providing care and treatment to the patient in the hospital.
(2)
Notwithstanding subdivision (b)(1), any information received from a health care provider that corrects or modifies a patient's hospital record shall be made a part of the patient's hospital record with a notation as to the date the information was supplied and the name or names of the person or persons supplying the information.
(c)
This section shall not be construed to authorize any disclosure of information that would be prohibited pursuant to the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) (
42 U.S.C. § 1320d
et seq.).
Acts 2007 , ch. 391, § 1.
2023 Tennessee Code › Title 68 - HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-221-1319) › HEALTH (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-6-201) › Chapter 11 - HEALTH FACILITIES AND RESOURCES (§§ 68-11-101 — 68-11-2308) › Part 3 - MEDICAL RECORDS ACT OF 1974 (§§ 68-11-301 — 68-11-314) › Section 68-11-313 - Authentication of verbal orders

(a)
(1)
A hospital licensed pursuant to this chapter shall require that all verbal orders be authenticated by a physician or authorized individual who has the authority to issue verbal orders in accordance with hospital policies or medical staff bylaws.
(2)
The policies or bylaws shall require that: authentication of a verbal order occurs within forty-eight (48) hours after the time the order is made unless a read-back and verify process pursuant to subdivision (a)(3) is used. The individual receiving a verbal order shall record the date and time of the verbal order, and sign the verbal order in accordance with hospital policies or medical staff bylaws.
(3)
A hospital policy may provide for a read-back and verify process for verbal orders. A read-back and verify process shall require that the individual receiving the order immediately read back the order to the physician or authorized individual, who shall immediately verify that the read-back order is correct. The individual receiving the verbal order shall record that the order was read back and verified. If the read-back and verify process is followed, the verbal order shall be authenticated no later than fourteen (14) days after the date of the verbal order.
(b)
Nothing in this subsection (b) shall be interpreted to encourage the more frequent use of verbal orders by the medical staff of a hospital.
(c)
Hospital policies or medical staff bylaws may establish a variety of modalities for communicating verbal orders and a read-back and verify process including, but not limited to, oral or electronic means so long as subdivisions (a)(2) and (3) are met.
(d)
For the purposes of this section, telephone orders are considered verbal orders.
Acts 2011, ch. 258, § 1.
2023 Tennessee Code › Title 68 - HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-221-1319) › HEALTH (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-6-201) › Chapter 11 - HEALTH FACILITIES AND RESOURCES (§§ 68-11-101 — 68-11-2308) › Part 3 - MEDICAL RECORDS ACT OF 1974 (§§ 68-11-301 — 68-11-314) › Section 68-11-314 - Obtaining records to facilitate investigations regarding opiate drug abuse, overdoses, and deaths

(a)
Pursuant to §
68-1-104
, the commissioner of health or the commissioner's designee may obtain records maintained by any facility licensed under this title to facilitate investigations and inquiries concerning opioid drug abuse, opioid drug overdoses, and opioid overdose deaths. Such facilities shall provide records in the most efficient and expedient means possible. To determine these means, the department shall:
(1)
Consult with stakeholders to develop data reporting elements and a short term mechanism for near real-time electronic access to these data elements by July 1, 2016;
(2)
Implement the short-term reporting system by October 1, 2016; and
(3)
Consult with stakeholders to develop a long-term electronic real-time data reporting plan utilizing electronic processes for opioid drug abuse, overdoses, and overdose deaths by January 1, 2017.
(b)
Electronic access and reporting shall be limited to the minimum necessary to facilitate the commissioner's investigation or inquiry and may be communicated to licensed clinicians involved in the patient's care or their authorized representatives.
Added by 2016 Tenn. Acts, ch. 959, s 1, eff. 4/27/2016.
2023 Tennessee Code › Title 68 - HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-221-1319) › HEALTH (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-6-201) › Chapter 11 - HEALTH FACILITIES AND RESOURCES (§§ 68-11-101 — 68-11-2308) › Part 4 - HOSPITAL RECORDS AS EVIDENCE (§§ 68-11-401 — 68-11-408) › Section 68-11-401 - Part definitions

As used in this part, unless the context otherwise requires:
(1)
"Custodian" means and includes the medical record practitioner and the administrator or other chief officer of a duly licensed hospital in this state and its proprietor, the appropriately designated person of a community mental health center, as well as their deputies and assistants, and any other persons who are official custodians or depositories of records; and
(2)
(A)
"Records" means and includes "hospital records" as defined in §
68-11-302
; however, a subpoena duces tecum for records shall not be deemed to include X-rays, electrocardiograms and like graphic matter, unless specifically referred to in the subpoena.
(B)
For the purposes of this part, "records" includes those records identified in §
68-11-302(5)
maintained by a community mental health center for the purposes intended in such section, and the terms "hospital confinement," "hospital services," or "hospitals" as contained in such section shall, for the purposes of this part only, include a community mental health center.
Acts 1977, ch. 158, § 1; T.C.A., § 53-1501; Acts 1984, ch. 819, § 1.
2023 Tennessee Code › Title 68 - HEALTH, SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-221-1319) › HEALTH (§§ 68-1-NEW — 68-6-201) › Chapter 11 - HEALTH FACILITIES AND RESOURCES (§§ 68-11-101 — 68-11-2308) › Part 4 - HOSPITAL RECORDS AS EVIDENCE (§§ 68-11-401 — 68-11-408) › Section 68-11-402 - Furnishing copies of records in compliance with subpoenas

(a)
Except as otherwise provided, when a subpoena duces tecum is served upon a custodian of records of any community mental health center or hospital duly licensed under the laws of this state in an action or proceeding in which the hospital is neither a party nor the place where any cause of action is alleged to have arisen, and the subpoena requires the production of all or any part of the records of the hospital or community mental health center relating to the care or treatment of a patient in the hospital or community mental health center, it shall be sufficient compliance with the subpoena if the custodian or other officer of the hospital or community mental health center within five (5) days after being served with a subpoena duces tecum, shall, either by personal delivery or certified or registered mail, file with the court clerk or the officer, body or tribunal conducting the hearing, a true and correct copy, which may be a copy reproduced on film or other reproducing material by microfilming, photographing, photostating or other approximate process, or a facsimile, exemplification or copy of such reproduction or copy, of all records described in the subpoena.
(b)
Any party intending to use this section shall furnish the adverse party or the adverse party's attorney a copy of the subpoena duces tecum not less than ten (10) days prior to the date set for the trial of the matter for which the records may be introduced.
Acts 1977, ch. 158, § 2; T.C.A., § 53-1502; Acts 1984, ch. 819, §§ 2, 3.