Section 22-21-413 Reporting Requirements; Availability of Data.

(a) All hospitals shall report inpatient and outpatient discharge data pursuant to rules adopted by the department, including rules defining inpatient and outpatient discharges. (b) After receiving the discharge data, the department shall promptly make the discharge data available to the Alabama Hospital Association, which shall use the data strictly for its own internal purposes and for internal purposes of its membership. The department shall not otherwise distribute the discharge data other than what is determined to be permissible pursuant to the rules adopted to administer this article. (c) No discharge data or other information shall be made available to the public by the association or the department that reasonably could be expected to reveal the identity of any patient. The discharge data reported under this article is confidential and shall not be available to the public until the department processes and verifies that the discharge data otherwise satisfies the requirements for public disclosure under this article and applicable federal law. (d) The department shall adopt rules regarding the processed and verified data that is made available to the public and for the release of limited data sets, which are compliant with the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), Public Law 104-191, its amendments and implementing regulations.