California Welfare and Institutions Code

§ 5328

WIC § 5328 Effective Sep 13, 2023Div. 5 · Part 1 · Ch. 2 · Art. 7

Statute text

(a)All information and records obtained in the course of providing services under Division 4 (commencing with Section 4000), Division 4.1 (commencing with Section 4400), Division 4.5 (commencing with Section 4500), Division 5 (commencing with Section 5000), Division 6 (commencing with Section 6000), or Division 7 (commencing with Section 7100), to either voluntary or involuntary recipients of services are confidential. Information and records obtained in the course of providing similar services to either voluntary or involuntary recipients before 1969 are also confidential. Information and records shall be disclosed only in any of the following cases:

(1)(A) In communications between qualified professional persons in the provision of services or appropriate referrals, or in the course of conservatorship proceedings. The consent of the patient, or the patient’s guardian or conservator, shall be obtained before information or records may be disclosed by a professional person employed by a facility to a professional person not employed by the facility who does not have the medical or psychological responsibility for the patient’s care.

(B)Notwithstanding subparagraph (A), if the patient is a dependent or ward of the juvenile court who has been removed from the physical custody of their parents, legal guardian, or Indian custodian, and who is not under a conservatorship, the consent of the patient or their guardian or conservator is not required before information or records may be disclosed to the dependent’s or ward’s social worker or probation officer for the purposes of ensuring the dependent or ward receives all necessary services or referrals for transition out of a facility to a lower level of care as allowed under 45 C.F.R. Sections 164.502(a)(1)(ii) and 164.512 or any successor regulations. Information obtained pursuant to this paragraph shall not be used in any criminal or juvenile justice proceeding without complying with Section 827. This paragraph does not prohibit evidence identical to that contained within the records from being admissible in a criminal or juvenile justice proceeding, if the evidence is derived solely from means other than this paragraph, as permitted by law. This section does not permit the disclosure of records from a juvenile case file absent compliance with the provisions of Section 827.

…

Legislative history

Amended by Stats. 2023, Ch. 191, Sec. 9. (SB 137) Effective September 13, 2023.