Section 2995. Structure and definitions

1. Structure. * (a) The department
  shall undertake  an  initiative  for  the  purposes  of  increasing  the
  information available to patients about health care providers and health
  care  plans,  and improving the quality of health care in this state, by
  creating  a  statewide  health  information  system,  collecting  health
  information  for  dissemination  by  means  of such system, and studying
  additional uses of such information. Such moneys as may be necessary  to
  effect the purpose of this section may be appropriated to the department
  for its expenses.
    * NB Effective until March 31, 2010
    * (a) The department shall undertake an initiative for the purposes of
  increasing  the  information  available  to  patients  about health care
  providers and health care plans, and improving  the  quality  of  health
  care  in  this state, by creating a statewide health information system,
  collecting health information for dissemination by means of such system,
  and studying additional uses of such information. Such moneys as may  be
  necessary  to  effect the purpose of this section may be appropriated to
  the department for its expenses, but in no event shall funds be diverted
  from existing uses of the office  of  professional  medical  conduct  in
  order to fulfill the purposes of this section.
    * NB Effective March 31, 2010
    (b)   The  department  shall  promulgate  rules  for  the  purpose  of
  implementing the provisions of this title.
    2. Definitions. For the purposes of this title:
    (a) "Health care plan" shall mean a health  maintenance  organization,
  as  defined by subdivision one of section forty-four hundred one of this
  chapter, a health  service  corporation  licensed  pursuant  to  article
  forty-three  of  the  insurance  law,  a  prepaid  health  services plan
  licensed pursuant to section forty-four hundred three-a of this chapter,
  or an integrated delivery system licensed pursuant to section forty-four
  hundred eight-a of this chapter.
    (b) "Health information" shall mean physician data, hospital data, and
  health care plan data, to the extent such data is  disclosable  pursuant
  to  any provision of law. Such term shall not include individual patient
  data, except to the extent such data  is  disclosable  pursuant  to  any
  other provision of law.
    (c) "Individual patient data" shall mean any information concerning an
  individual  patient,  whether  held  orally  or  recorded in any form or
  medium, including, but  not  limited  to,  information  derived  from  a
  biological  sample  from  the  patient,  the  sample  itself  or genetic
  information that:
    (i) relates to the physical or  mental  health  of  the  patient,  the
  provision  of  health  care  to  the  patient,  or  the  payment for the
  provision of health care to the patient; and
    (ii) (A) identifies the individual patient;
    (B) could forseeably be used or manipulated to identify the individual
  patient; or
    (C) could forseeably be linked or matched  to  any  other  information
  described in clause (A) or (B) of this subparagraph.
    (d)  "Statewide  health information system" shall mean a collection of
  health information to be publicly available on an ongoing basis for  the
  purpose of making statewide comparisons.
    (e)  "Preferred  provider organization data" shall mean data collected
  from an insurance company subject to article thirty-two of the insurance
  law, a corporation subject to article forty-three of the insurance  law,
  or  a  municipal  cooperative  health benefit plan certified pursuant to
  article forty-seven of the insurance  law,  with  respect  to  preferred

  provider  organization (PPO) products, as defined by the commissioner in
  consultation with the superintendent, offered by such entities.