Sponsored by:
Assemblyman HERB CONAWAY, JR.
District 7 (Burlington)
Assemblywoman NANCY J. PINKIN
District 18 (Middlesex)
Assemblywoman ANGELICA M. JIMENEZ
District 32 (Bergen and Hudson)
SYNOPSIS
Requires electronic medical record programs to include gender and race and ethnicity data entry feature; requires certain laboratories to record patients’ gender and racial and ethnic information.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning clinical laboratories and electronic medical records companies and supplementing Title 45 of the Revised Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. As used in this act, “clinical laboratory” means a laboratory licensed by the Department of Health, pursuant to the "New Jersey Clinical Laboratory Improvement Act," P.L.1975, c.166 (C.45:9-42.26 et seq.).
2. A clinical laboratory which collects or receives specimens for analysis shall electronically record and report the patient’s gender identity, sexual orientation, and racial and ethnic information as a condition of licensure. As a condition of licensure, any non-electronic specimen collection and analysis requisition forms distributed by the clinical laboratory shall require the manual entry of the patient’s gender identity, sexual orientation, and racial and ethnic information on the form. If such information is ascertainable to a clinical laboratory, a laboratory order for inpatient and outpatient matters shall indicate the patient’s race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, and gender identity if the laboratory is required to report the condition of the patient, as determined by the Department of Health.
3. An electronic medical records company, which offers electronic medical records software programs for sale, on or after the effective date of this act in this State, shall configure the programs in a manner that prevents a health care provider from saving a patient’s information in the program unless the patient’s gender identity, sexual orientation, and racial and ethnic data is first entered into the program.
4. The Commissioner of Health shall adopt rules and regulations, in accordance with the “Administrative Procedure Act,” P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), as are necessary to effectuate the provisions of this act.
5. This act shall take effect 90 days after the date of enactment.
STATEMENT
This bill requires: (1) electronic patient medical record programs to include race and ethnicity data entry feature and (2) certain laboratories to record patients’ racial and ethnic information.
Under the bill, a clinical laboratory which collects or receives specimens for analysis is to electronically record and report the patient’s gender identity, sexual orientation, and racial and ethnic information as a condition of licensure. As a condition of licensure, any non-electronic specimen collection and analysis requisition forms distributed by the clinical laboratory is to require the manual entry of the patient’s gender identity, sexual orientation, and racial and ethnic information on the form. If such information is ascertainable to a clinical laboratory, a laboratory order for inpatient and outpatient matters is to indicate the patient’s race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, and gender identity if the laboratory is required to report the condition of the patient, as determined by the Department of Health.
Further, the bill provides that an electronic medical records company, which offers electronic medical records software programs for sale, on or after the effective date of this act in this State, shall configure the programs in a manner that prevents a health care provider from saving a patient’s information in the program unless the patient’s gender identity, sexual orientation, and racial and ethnic data is first entered into the program.