H-1992.1  _______________________________________________

                    SUBSTITUTE HOUSE BILL 1730

          _______________________________________________

State of Washington      57th Legislature     2001 Regular Session

By House Committee on Health Care (originally sponsored by Representatives Schual‑Berke, Skinner, Clements, Pennington, Kagi, Linville, Cody, Campbell, Lovick, Cox, Ruderman, Ballasiotes, O'Brien, Hunt, Edwards, Dickerson, Grant, Darneille and Keiser)

Read first time .  Referred to Committee on .

Requiring certain health care providers to report gunshot or knife wounds to the authorities.

    AN ACT Relating to the reporting of specified injuries by trauma health care providers; and adding a new section to chapter 18.130 RCW.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1.  A new section is added to chapter 18.130 RCW to read as follows:

    (1) Any health care practitioner listed under RCW 18.130.040, including personnel of a hospital, clinic, or other health care facility who knowingly treats any person suffering from a gunshot wound, or who receives a request for such treatment, shall report within a reasonable time the existence of the gunshot wound to an appropriate law enforcement agency.  However, no report is necessary if a law enforcement officer is present with the victim while treatment is being administered.  The report may be made orally or otherwise.

    (2) A hospital, clinic, or other health care facility may designate an individual to make the report.  The report shall be made as soon as possible, but no later than the time of the victim's release from the facility.

    (3) A person required to make a report or who participates in judicial proceedings resulting from the report, acting in good faith, is immune from any civil liability which might otherwise result from these actions.  In all such civil proceedings, good faith shall be a rebuttable presumption.

    (4) The confidential or privileged nature of the communication between the health care practitioner and the person being treated as a patient pursuant to chapter 70.02 RCW is abrogated to the extent of this reporting and does not constitute grounds for failure to report or for the exclusion of evidence resulting from a report made under this section.

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