2006 Kansas Code - 65-445

      65-445.   Same; records; annual report to secretary of health and environment; confidentiality of information, exceptions; penalties for violations. (a) Every medical care facility shall keep written records of all pregnancies which are lawfully terminated within such medical care facility and shall annually submit a written report thereon to the secretary of health and environment in the manner and form prescribed by the secretary. Every person licensed to practice medicine and surgery shall keep a record of all pregnancies which are lawfully terminated by such person in a location other than a medical care facility and shall annually submit a written report thereon to the secretary of health and environment in the manner and form prescribed by the secretary.

      (b)   Each report required by this section shall include the number of pregnancies terminated during the period of time covered by the report, the type of medical facility in which the pregnancy was terminated, information required to be reported under K.S.A. 65-6703 and amendments thereto if applicable to the pregnancy terminated, and such other information as may be required by the secretary of health and environment, but the report shall not include the names of the persons whose pregnancies were so terminated.

      (c)   Information obtained by the secretary of health and environment under this section shall be confidential and shall not be disclosed in a manner that would reveal the identity of any person licensed to practice medicine and surgery who submits a report to the secretary under this section or the identity of any medical care facility which submits a report to the secretary under this section, except that such information, including information identifying such persons and facilities may be disclosed to the state board of healing arts upon request of the board for disciplinary action conducted by the board and may be disclosed to the attorney general upon a showing that a reasonable cause exists to believe that a violation of this act has occurred. Any information disclosed to the state board of healing arts or the attorney general pursuant to this subsection shall be used solely for the purposes of a disciplinary action or criminal proceeding. Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, information obtained by the secretary under this section may be used only for statistical purposes and such information shall not be released in a manner which would identify any county or other area of this state in which the termination of the pregnancy occurred. A violation of this subsection (c) is a class A nonperson misdemeanor.

      (d)   In addition to such criminal penalty under subsection (c), any person licensed to practice medicine and surgery or medical care facility whose identity is revealed in violation of this section may bring a civil action against the responsible person or persons for any damages to the person licensed to practice medicine and surgery or medical care facility caused by such violation.

      (e)   For the purpose of maintaining confidentiality as provided by subsections (c) and (d), reports of terminations of pregnancies required by this section shall identify the person or facility submitting such reports only by confidential code number assigned by the secretary of health and environment to such person or facility and the department of health and environment shall maintain such reports only by such number.

      History:   L. 1969, ch. 182, § 3; L. 1975, ch. 462, § 72; L. 1995, ch. 260, § 2; L. 1998, ch. 142, § 17; July 1.