1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to privacy; regulating access to employee 
  1.3             medical records by self-insured employers; proposing 
  1.4             coding for new law in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 181. 
  1.5   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.6      Section 1.  [181.967] [ACCESS TO EMPLOYEE MEDICAL RECORDS 
  1.7   BY SELF-INSURED EMPLOYERS.] 
  1.8      Subdivision 1.  [DEFINITIONS.] (a) The definitions in this 
  1.9   subdivision apply to this section. 
  1.10     (b) "Insurance plan administrator" means a person who 
  1.11  provides administrative services in connection with the 
  1.12  operation of a self-insurance plan, including: 
  1.13     (1) processing, reviewing, or paying claims; 
  1.14     (2) establishing or operating funds and accounts; or 
  1.15     (3) providing other necessary administrative services. 
  1.16     (c) "Self-insured employer" means an employer who directly 
  1.17  or indirectly provides a plan of health coverage to its 
  1.18  employees and administers the plan itself or through an 
  1.19  insurance plan administrator. 
  1.20     Subd. 2.  [RESTRICTIONS ON ACCESS TO EMPLOYEE MEDICAL 
  1.21  RECORDS.] A self-insured employer who has access to medical 
  1.22  records on employees in connection with the administration of 
  1.23  employee health coverage shall maintain the records in separate 
  1.24  files and restrict access to the records to persons who need 
  1.25  access in the performance of their duties with respect to the 
  2.1   processing of claims or fraud investigation.  An insurance plan 
  2.2   administrator who administers employee health coverage on behalf 
  2.3   of a self-insured employer may disclose medical records on 
  2.4   employees to the employer only to the extent necessary for 
  2.5   processing of claims or fraud investigation. 
  2.6      Subd. 3.  [REMEDIES.] A person who negligently or 
  2.7   intentionally violates this section is liable to the employee 
  2.8   for damages caused by the unauthorized access, plus costs and 
  2.9   reasonable attorney fees.  An employee may also seek injunctive 
  2.10  relief for a violation of this section, plus costs and 
  2.11  reasonable attorney fees. 
  2.12     Subd. 4.  [RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER LAWS.] Nothing in this 
  2.13  section authorizes access to or use of medical records not 
  2.14  otherwise permitted under law.