As used in this chapter: (a) “Autoimmune disease” means any disease that results from an aberrant immune response, including, without limitation: (1) Acute Disseminated Encephalomyelitis (ADEM) (2) Acute necrotizing hemorrhagic leukoencephalitis (3) Addison’s disease (4) Agammaglobulinemia (5) Alopecia areata (6) Amyloidosis (7) Ankylosing spondylitis (8) Anti-GBM/Anti-TBM nephritis (9) Antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) (10) Autoimmune angioedema (11) […]
The Commissioner of the Department of Health shall establish a territory-wide autoimmune disease registry for the purpose of recording types of autoimmune diseases diagnosed or treated in the Virgin Islands and compiling necessary and appropriate information concerning those cases as determined by the Department of Health in order to conduct epidemiologic surveys of autoimmune diseases […]
Physicians, hospitals, health facilities, ambulatory outpatient surgical centers, and medical laboratories shall report to the Department of Health each confirmed case of autoimmune disease. The Department of Health shall, to the greatest extent possible, use the reported information in the development of the autoimmune disease registry established in section 1262.
All information reported or collected for the autoimmune disease registry pursuant to this chapter is for use by the Department of Health only, and the Department of Health shall be keep all individually identifiable health information confidential.
The Department of Health shall grant any person or entity involved in a legitimate research activity access to information concerning autoimmune diseases obtained by the Department of Health under this chapter under the conditions that: (1) No individually identifiable health information is released by the Department of Health and adequate safeguards are put into place […]
The Department of Health may release confidential information concerning individual autoimmune disease patients to physicians and local health officers for diagnostic and treatment purposes if: (1) The patient’s attending physician gives oral or written consent to the release of the information; or (2) The patient gives written consent by completing a form authorizing the release […]
Not later than December 31 of each year, the Department of Health shall publish and make available to the public an annual report summarizing the information collected under this chapter during that calendar year.
