§30-3-9. Records of Board; Expungement; Examination; Notice; Public Information; Voluntary Agreements Relating to Alcohol or Chemical Dependency; Confidentiality of Same; Physician-Patient Privileges

(a) The board shall maintain a permanent record of the names of all physicians, podiatrists, and physician assistants, licensed, certified or otherwise lawfully practicing in this state and of all persons applying to be so licensed to practice, along with an individual historical record for each such individual containing reports and all other information furnished the board under this article or otherwise. Such record may include, in accordance with rules established by the board, additional items relating to the individual's record of professional practice that will facilitate proper review of such individual's professional competence.

(b) Upon a determination by the board that any report submitted to it is without merit, the report shall be expunged from the individual's historical record.

(c) A physician, podiatrist, physician assistant or applicant, or authorized representative thereof, has the right, upon request, to examine his or her own individual historical record maintained by the board pursuant to this article and to place into such record a statement of reasonable length of his or her own view of the correctness or relevance of any information existing in such record. Such statement shall at all times accompany that part of the record in contention.

(d) A physician, podiatrist, physician assistant or applicant has the right to seek through court action the amendment or expungement of any part of his or her historical record.

(e) A physician, podiatrist, physician assistant or applicant shall be provided written notice within thirty days of the placement and substance of any information in his or her individual historical record that pertains to him or her and that was not submitted to the board by him or her.

(f) Except for information relating to biographical background, education, professional training and practice, a voluntary agreement entered into pursuant to subsection (h) of this section and which has been disclosed to the board, prior disciplinary action by any entity, or information contained on the licensure application, the board shall expunge information in an individual's historical record unless it has initiated a proceeding for a hearing upon such information within two years of the placing of the information into the historical record.

(g) Orders of the board relating to disciplinary action against a physician, podiatrist or physician assistant are public information.

(h)(1) In order to encourage voluntary participation in monitored alcohol chemical dependency or major mental illness programs and in recognition of the fact that major mental illness, alcoholism and chemical dependency are illnesses, a physician, podiatrist or physician assistant licensed, certified or otherwise lawfully practicing in this state or applying for a license to practice in this state may enter into a voluntary agreement with the physician health program as defined in section two, article three-d of this chapter. The agreement between the physician, podiatrist or physician assistant and the physician health program shall include a jointly agreed upon treatment program and mandatory conditions and procedures to monitor compliance with the program of recovery.