HEALTH INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

M.G.L. pt. Part I, tit. Title XVII, ch. c. 118I

in effect

M.G.L. c. 118I, § 1 Definitions

c. 118I, § 1. Definitions Section 1. As used in this chapter, the following words shall, unless the context clearly requires otherwise, have the following meanings: ''Commission'', the health policy commission established in section 2 of chapter 6D. ''Council'', the health information technology council established under section 2. ''Electronic health record,'' an electronic record of patient health information generated by llor more encounters in any care delivery setting. ''Executive office'', the executive office of health and human services. ''Health information exchange,'' an electronic platform enabling the transmission of healthcare-related data among providers, payers, personal health records controlled by a patient and government agencies according to national standards, the reliable and secure transfer of data among diverse systems and access to and retrieval of data. ''Longitudinal medical record'', a patient's lifetime electronic health record whether located, maintained or stored on a provider server, at a central storage repository, or distributed in multiple locations but accessible with patient consent. ''Massachusetts eHealth institute'' or ''institute'', the Massachusetts e–Health institute established under section 6D of chapter 40J. ''Office of the National Coordinator'' or ''ONC'', the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology within the United States Department of Health and Human Services. ''Statewide health information exchange'', a health information exchange established, operated or funded by a governmental entity or entities in the commonwealth.

M.G.L. c. 118I, § 2 Health information technology council

c. 118I, § 2. Health information technology council Section 2. (a) There shall be a health information technology council within the executive office of health and human services. The council shall coordinate with state agencies, including the commission, other governmental entities and private stakeholders to develop a statewide health information exchange. The council shall advise the executive office on design, implementation, operation and use of the statewide health information exchange and related infrastructure. (b) The council shall consist of the following 21 members: the secretary of health and human services or a designee, who shall serve as the chair; the secretary of administration and finance or a designee; the executive director of the health policy commission or a designee; the executive director of the center for health information analysis; the director of the Massachusetts e–Health Institute; the secretary of economic development or a designee; the director of the office of Medicaid or a designee; and 14 members who shall be appointed by the governor, of whom at least 1 shall be an expert in health information technology; 1 shall be an expert in law and health policy; 1 shall be an expert in health information privacy and security; 1 shall be from an academic medical center; 1 shall be from a community hospital; 1 shall be from a community health center; 1 shall be from a long term care facility; 1 shall be a from large physician group practice; 1 shall be from a small physician group practice; 1 shall be a registered nurse; shall be from a behavioral health, substance abuse disorder or mental health services organization; 1 shall represent health insurance carriers; and 2 additional members shall have experience or expertise in health information technology. The council may consult with all relevant parties, public or private, in exercising its duties under this section, including persons with expertise and experience in the development and dissemination of electronic health records systems, and the implementation of electronic health record systems by small physician groups or ambulatory care providers, as well as persons representing organizations within the commonwealth interested in and affected by the development of networks and electronic health records systems, including, but not limited to, persons representing local public health agencies, licensed hospitals and other licensed facilities and providers, private purchasers, the medical and nursing professions, physicians and health insurers, the state quality improvement organization, academic and research institutions, consumer advisory organizations with expertise in health information technology and other stakeholders as identified by the secretary of health and human services. Appointed members of the council shall serve for terms of 2 years or until a successor is appointed. Members shall be eligible to be reappointed and shall serve without compensation. Chapter 268A shall apply to all council members, except that the council may purchase from, sell to, borrow from, contract with or otherwise deal with any organization in which any council member is in anyway interested or involved; provided, however, that such interest or involvement shall be disclosed in advance to the council and recorded in the minutes of the proceedings of the council; and provided, further, that no member shall be considered to have violated section 4 of said chapter 268A because of the member's receipt of usual and regular compensation from such member's employer during the time in which the member participates in the activities of the council.

M.G.L. c. 118I, § 3 Procurements and contracts for development of statewide health information exchange technology

c. 118I, § 3. Procurements and contracts for development of statewide health information exchange technology Section 3. (a) The executive office shall conduct procurements and enter into contracts for the purchase and development of all hardware and software in connection with the creation and implementation of the statewide health information exchange. The executive office may, in consultation with the council and the commission, oversee the technical aspects of the development, dissemination and implementation of the statewide health information exchange including any modules, applications, interfaces or other technology infrastructure necessary to connect provider electronic health records systems to the statewide health information exchange. (b) The executive office shall: (i) in consultation with the council, develop a health information exchange strategic and operating plan; (ii) implement, operate and maintain the statewide health information exchange; and (iii) develop and implement statewide health information exchange infrastructure, including, without limitation, provider directories, certificate storage, transmission gateways, auditing systems and any components necessary to connect the statewide health information exchange to provider electronic health records systems.

M.G.L. c. 118I, § 4 Consultation with organizations of regional payers and providers; policies consistent with federal standards

c. 118I, § 4. Consultation with organizations of regional payers and providers; policies consistent with federal standards Section 4. In carrying out of this chapter, the council shall consult with various organizations of regional payers and providers in developing the health information exchange plan and annual updates and in designing, developing, disseminating and implementing the health information exchange. In carrying out this chapter, the executive office shall, to the maximum extent practicable, adopt policies that are consistent with those relating to similar subject matters adopted by the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology of the United States Department of Health and Human Services; provided, however, that nothing herein shall be construed to limit the executive office's ability to advance interoperability and other health information technology beyond the standards adopted by the ONC, including without limitation any applicable meaningful use standards.

M.G.L. c. 118I, § 5 Statewide health information exchange implementation plan

c. 118I, § 5. Statewide health information exchange implementation plan Section 5. (a) The council shall approve all expenditures from the Massachusetts Health Information Exchange Fund established under section 10. The council, in consultation with the executive office and institute, shall prepare and annually update a statewide health information exchange implementation plan. The plan shall contain a budget for the application of funds from the Massachusetts Health Information Exchange Fund. (b) Components of the plan, as updated, shall be community-based and shall assess a municipality's or region's readiness to implement an interoperable electronic health information exchange within the referral market for a defined patient population. (c) The plan as updated shall: (i) allow seamless, secure electronic exchange of health information among health care providers, health plans and other authorized users; (ii) provide consumers with secure, electronic access to their own health information; (iii) meet all applicable federal and state privacy and security requirements, including requirements imposed by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, P.L. 104–191, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, P.L. 111–5, 42 C.F.R. §§ 2.11 et seq. and 45 C.F.R. §§ 160, 162, 164 and 170.; (iv) establish a method by which patients may choose which of their health care providers may disseminate their individually identifiable information; (v) provide public health reporting capability as required under state law; and (vi) allow reporting of health information other than identifiable patient health information for purposes of such activities as the executive office may consider necessary. (d) The plan as updated shall be consistent with the mandatory compliance date for implementation of the health information exchange under section 7 and all other requirements of this chapter. Each such plan shall be consistent with the statewide electronic health records plan developed by the institute under subsection (c) of section 6D of of chapter 40J.

M.G.L. c. 118I, § 6 Patient's electronic access to health records

c. 118I, § 6. Patient's electronic access to health records Section 6. Every patient shall have electronic access to such patient's health records. The executive office shall ensure that each patient will have secure electronic access to such patient's electronic health records with each of such patient's providers. The executive office shall ensure that the design of the statewide health information exchange includes the ability to transmit copies of electronic health records to patients directly or allow facilities to provide mechanisms for such patient to access such patient's own electronic health record.

M.G.L. c. 118I, § 7 Fully interoperable electronic health records systems connecting to statewide health information exchange

c. 118I, § 7. Fully interoperable electronic health records systems connecting to statewide health information exchange Section 7. All providers in the commonwealth shall implement fully interoperable electronic health records systems that connect to the statewide health information exchange. The executive office, in consultation with the institute, shall ensure that the statewide health information exchange and associated electronic health records systems comply with all state and federal privacy requirements, including those imposed by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, P.L. 104–191, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, P.L. 111–5, 42 C.F.R. §§ 2.11 et seq. and 45 C.F.R. §§ 160, 162 and 164.

M.G.L. c. 118I, § 8 Penalties for non-compliance

c. 118I, § 8. Penalties for non-compliance Section 8. The executive office shall prescribe by regulation penalties for non-compliance by healthcare providers with the requirements of section 7; provided, however, that the executive office may waive penalties for good cause, including, but not limited to lack of broadband internet access as provided in section 9. Penalties collected under this section shall be deposited into the Prevention and Wellness Trust Fund, established in section 2G of chapter 111.

M.G.L. c. 118I, § 9 Temporary waiver of certain requirements if unable to comply due to the lack of broadband internet access

c. 118I, § 9. Temporary waiver of certain requirements if unable to comply due to the lack of broadband internet access Section 9. If a provider is located in a geographic area of the commonwealth that does not have broadband internet access and, due to lack of such broadband internet access, such provider is unable to fully comply with the requirements of the health information exchange and any other health it information technology requirements implemented by the executive office under this chapter, such provider may apply to the executive office for a temporary waiver of any specific requirement with which it is unable to comply. If the executive office determines that the provider is unable to comply with a requirement due to the lack of broadband internet access, the executive office may grant a waiver of such requirement; provided, however, that, upon a determination by the executive office that broadband internet access has become available to such provider since the date of the grant of the waiver, the executive office shall notify such provider of such availability. Within 180 days of such notice, such provider shall take such actions as are necessary to bring the provider into full compliance with the requirements of the health information exchange and any other health information technology requirements implemented by the executive office under this chapter.

M.G.L. c. 118I, § 10 Massachusetts Health Information Exchange Fund

c. 118I, § 10. Massachusetts Health Information Exchange Fund Section 10. There shall be established and set up on the books of the executive office the Massachusetts Health Information Exchange Fund, referred to in this section as the fund, for the purpose of developing a statewide health information exchange. There shall be credited to the fund any appropriations, proceeds of any bonds or notes of the commonwealth issued for the purpose, or other monies authorized by the general court and designated thereto; any federal grants or loans; any private gifts, grants or donations made available; and any income derived from the investment of amounts credited to the fund. The executive office shall seek, to the greatest extent possible, private gifts, grants and donations to the fund. The executive office shall hold the fund in an account or accounts separate from other funds. The fund shall be administered by the executive office without further appropriation. Amounts credited to the fund shall be available for reasonable expenditure by the executive office, subject to the approval of the council where such approval is required under this chapter, for such purposes as the executive office determines are necessary to support the dissemination and development of the statewide health information exchange.

M.G.L. c. 118I, § 11 Plan requirements

c. 118I, § 11. Plan requirements Section 11. Any plan approved by the executive office and council or the e–Health institute, including every grantee and implementing organization that receives monies funded in whole or in part from the e–Health Institute Fund established in section 6E of chapter 40J or the Massachusetts Health Information Exchange Fund established under section 10, shall: (1) establish a mechanism to allow patients to opt-in to the health information exchange and to opt-out at any time; (2) maintain identifiable health information in physically and technologically secure environments by means including, but not limited to: prohibiting the storage or transfer of unencrypted and non-password protected identifiable health information on portable data storage devices; requiring data encryption, unique alpha-numerical identifiers and password protection; and other methods to prevent unauthorized access to identifiable health information; (3) provide patients the option of, upon request to a provider, obtaining a list of individuals and entities that have accessed their identifiable health information from that provider; (4) develop and distribute to authorized users of the health information exchange and to prospective exchange participants, written guidelines addressing privacy, confidentiality and security of health information and inform individuals: the information available through the exchange, who may access their information and the purposes for which their information may be accessed; and (5) ensure compliance with all state and federal privacy requirements, including those imposed by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, P.L. 104–191, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, P.L. 111–5, 42 C.F.R. §§ 2.11 et seq. and 45 C.F.R. §§ 160, 162 and 164.

M.G.L. c. 118I, § 12 Unauthorized access or disclosure; reporting; notice to patient

c. 118I, § 12. Unauthorized access or disclosure; reporting; notice to patient Section 12. In the event of an unauthorized access to or disclosure of individually identifiable patient health information by or through the statewide health information exchange or by or through any technology grantees or implementing organizations funded in whole or in part from the e–Health Institute Fund established in section 6E of chapter 40J or the Massachusetts Health Information Exchange Fund established in section 10, the operator of such exchange or grantee or contractor shall: (i) report the conditions of such unauthorized access or disclosure as required by the executive office; and (ii) provide notice, as defined in section 1 of chapter 93H, as soon as practicable, but not later than 10 business days after such unauthorized access or disclosure, to any person whose patient health information may have been compromised as a result of such unauthorized access or disclosure, and shall report the conditions of such unauthorized access or disclosure. Any unauthorized access or disclosures shall be punishable by the civil penalties under section 16.

M.G.L. c. 118I, § 13 Patient election to participate in health information exchange

c. 118I, § 13. Patient election to participate in health information exchange Section 13. The ability of any provider to transfer or access all or any part of a patient's electronic health record under this chapter shall be subject to the patient's election to participate in the electronic health information exchange as provided in section 11.

M.G.L. c. 118I, § 14 Federal financial participation

c. 118I, § 14. Federal financial participation Section 14. The executive office, the council and the institute shall pursue and maximize all opportunities to qualify for federal financial participation under the matching grant program established under the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, P.L. 111–5. The council shall consult with the office of Medicaid to maximize all opportunities to qualify any expenditure for any other federal financial participation.

M.G.L. c. 118I, § 15 Annual report

c. 118I, § 15. Annual report Section 15. The council shall file an annual report, not later than January 30, with the joint committee on health care financing, the joint committee on economic development and emerging technologies, the house and senate committees on ways and means and the clerks of the house and senate concerning the activities of the council in general and, in particular, describing the progress to date in developing a statewide health information exchange and recommending such further legislative action as it deems appropriate.

M.G.L. c. 118I, § 16 Unauthorized access or disclosure; penalties

c. 118I, § 16. Unauthorized access or disclosure; penalties Section 16. Unauthorized access to or disclosure of individually identifiable patient health information by or through the statewide health information exchange or by or through any technology grantees or implementing organizations funded in whole or in part from the from the e–Health Institute Fund established in section 6E of chapter 40J or the Massachusetts Health Information Exchange Fund established in section 10, or any associated businesses managing or in possession of such information, the operator of such exchange or grantee or contractor shall be subject to fines or penalties as determined by the executive office. The executive office shall promulgate regulations to assess fair and reasonable fines or penalties.

Source: Massachusetts General Court (malegislature.gov)URL: https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartI/TitleXVII/Chapter118IFetched: 10/20/2026