Violent injuries-reporting requirements.

WORKING DRAFT
2013
STATE OF
WYOMING
13LSO-0038.E1

HOUSE BILL
NO.
HB0015

Violent injuries-reporting requirements.

Sponsored by:
Representative(s) Gingery

A BILL

for

AN ACT relating to
reporting of violent injuries
;
authorizing
certain health
care
practitioners to report injuries to local law enforcement authorities
as specified
; providing contents of the notice; prohibiting interference with the reporting;
and providing for an effective date.

Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Wyoming:

Section 1.

W.S.
35
‑
4
‑
9
01
is created to read:

ARTICLE
9
AUTHORIZED
REPORTING

35
‑
4
‑
9
01
.

Authorized
reporting of
violen
t injuries
.

(a)

In compliance with the
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, 42 U.S.C. 1320d et
seq.
, any health care practitioner employed in a health facility, clinic, physician's office, local or state public health department, a clinic or other type of facility operated by a local or state public health department who, in the practitioner's professional capacity or within the scope of the practitioner's employment, provides medical services for a patient may immediately make a report in accordance with subsection (c) of this section for:

(i)

Any person suffering from any wound or other physical injury inflicted by the person's own act or inflicted by another where the injury is by means of a firearm;

(ii)

Any person suffering from any non
accidental wounds caused by knives, axes or other sharp or pointed instruments;

(iii)

Any person suffering from any wound or other physical injury inflicted upon the person where the injury is the result of assaultive or abusive conduct if the victim agrees to the reporting.

(
b
)

Any health
care
practitioner
authorized
to report pursuant to subsection (a) of this section
shall make a report
t
o a local law enforcement agency as follows:

(
i)

A report by telephone shall be made immediately or as soon as practically possible
;

(
i
i
)

The report shall include the

following
minim
um
information, if known to the person reporting
:

(A
)

The name of the injured person
;

(B
)

The injured person's whereabouts
;

(C
)

The character and extent of the person's injuries
.

(c
)

For the purposes of this section, "injury" shall not include any psychological or physical condition brought about solely through the voluntary administration of a narcotic or restricted dangerous drug.

(
d
)

When two
(2)
or more persons who are
authorized
to report
pursuant to this section and
are present and jointly have knowledge of a known or suspected instance of violence that is
authorized
to be reported pursuant to this section, and when there is an agreement among these persons to report as a team, the team may select by mutual agreement a member of the team to make
the
report
. A member
of the team
who has knowledge that the member designated to report has failed to do so shall make the report.

The reporting duties under this section are individual, except as provided in
this subsection.

(
e
)

No supervisor or administrator shall impede or inhibit the reporting duties
authorized
under this section and no person making a report pursuant to this section shall be subject to any sanction for making the report. However, internal procedures to facilitate reporting and apprise supervisors and administrators of reports may be established, except that these procedures shall not be inconsistent with this
section.

(f)

Nothing in this section shall relieve a person of his duty to report under W.S. 14
‑
3
‑
205 or 35
‑
20
‑
103.

Section 2.

This act is effective July 1, 2013.

(END)

1
HB0015