§ 7–1305.12. Maintenance of records; information considered privileged and confidential; access; contents.

(a) Complete records for each person shall be maintained and shall be readily available to professional persons and to the staff workers who are directly involved with the particular person and to the Department on Disability Services without divulging the identity of the person. All information contained in a person’s records shall be considered privileged and confidential. The person’s parent or guardian who petitioned for the commitment, the person’s counsel, the person’s advocate for a person with an intellectual disability and any person properly authorized in writing by the person, if such person is capable of giving such authorization, shall be permitted access to the person’s records. These records shall include:

(1) Identification data, including the person’s legal status;

(2) The person’s history, including but not limited to:

(A) Family data, educational background and employment record;

(B) Prior medical history, both physical and mental, including prior institutionalization;

(3) The person’s grievances, if any;

(4) An inventory of the person’s life skills;

(5) A record of each physical examination which describes the results of the examination;

(6) A copy of the individual habilitation plan; and any modifications thereto and an appropriate summary which will guide and assist the professional and staff employees in implementing the person’s program;

(7) The findings made in periodic reviews of the habilitation plan which findings shall include an analysis of the successes and failures of the habilitation program and shall direct whatever modifications are necessary;

(8) A medication history and status;

(9) A summary of each significant contact by a professional person with a person;

(10) A summary of the person’s response to his or her program, prepared and recorded at least monthly, by the professional person designated pursuant to § 7-1305.04(c) to supervise the person’s habilitation;

(11) A monthly summary of the extent and nature of the person’s work activities and the effect of such activity upon the person’s progress along the habilitation plan;

(12) A signed order by a professional person, as set forth in § 7-1305.10(b), for any physical restraints;

(13) A description of any extraordinary incident or accident in the facility involving the person, to be entered by a staff member noting personal knowledge of the incident or accident or other source of information, including any reports of investigations of person’s mistreatment;

(14) A summary of family visits and contacts;

(15) A summary of attendance and leaves from the facility; and

(16) A record of any seizures, illnesses, treatments thereof, and immunizations.

(b) Notwithstanding subsection (a) of this section, information contained in a person’s record may be used or disclosed for the purposes of and in accordance with Chapter 2B of this title [§ 7-241 et seq.].

(Mar. 3, 1979, D.C. Law 2-137, § 512, 25 DCR 5094; Sept. 26, 1995, D.C. Law 11-52, § 506(w), 42 DCR 3684; Mar. 14, 2007, D.C. Law 16-264, § 301(m), 54 DCR 818; Dec. 4, 2010, D.C. Law 18-273, § 205, 57 DCR 7171; Sept. 26, 2012, D.C. Law 19-169, § 17(qq), 59 DCR 5567; May 5, 2018, D.C. Law 22-93, § 201(c)(41), 65 DCR 2823.)

Prior Codifications

1981 Ed., § 6-1972.

1973 Ed., § 6-1692.

Section References

This section is referenced in § 4-1371.06 and § 16-1054.

Effect of Amendments

D.C. Law 16-264, in the lead-in text, substituted “Department on Disability Services” for “Department of Human Services”.

D.C. Law 18-273 designated the existing text as subsec. (a); and added subsec. (b).

The 2012 amendment by D.C. Law 19-169 substituted “individual” for “customer” or variants throughout the section; and substituted “advocate for a person with an intellectual disability” for “mental retardation advocate” in the third sentence of the introductory language of (a).

Emergency Legislation

For temporary amendment of section, see § 402(j) of the Omnibus Budget Support Emergency Act of 1995 (D.C. Act 11-44, April 28, 1995, 42 DCR 2217) and § 506(w) of the Omnibus Budget Support Congressional Review Emergency Act of 1995 (D.C. Act 11-124, July 27, 1995, 42 DCR 4160).

For temporary (90 day) amendment of section, see § 2 of Disclosure of the Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities Fatality Review Committee and Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities Incident Management and Investigations Unit Information and Records Emergency Amendment Act of 2006 (D.C. Act 16-363, April 26, 2006, 53 DCR 3628).

For temporary (90 day) amendment of section, see § 301(m) of Developmental Disabilities Services Management Reform Emergency Amendment Act of 2006 (D.C. Act 16-672, December 28, 2006, 54 DCR 1155).

For temporary (90 day) amendment of section, see § 205 of Data-Sharing and Information Coordination Emergency Amendment Act of 2010 (D.C. Act 18-530, August 6, 2010, 57 DCR 8099).

For temporary (90 day) amendment of section, see § 205 of Data-Sharing and Information Coordination Congressional Review Emergency Amendment Act of 2010 (D.C. Act 18-582, October 20, 2010, 57 DCR 10118).

Temporary Legislation

For temporary (225 day) amendment of section, see § 505(w) of Multiyear Budget Spending Reduction and Support Temporary Act of 1995 (D.C. Law 10-253, March 23, 1995, law notification 42 DCR 1652).

For temporary (225 day) amendment of section, see § 2 of Disclosure of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities Fatality Review Committee and Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities Incident Management and Investigations Unit Information and Records Temporary Amendment Act of 2006 (D.C. Law 16-143, July 25, 2006, law notification 53 DCR 6686).

Editor's Notes

Section 35 of D.C. Law 19-169 provided that no provision of the act shall impair any right or obligation existing under law.