Under current law, if a person, while in the course of employment in a health care setting or as an emergency services worker, is exposed to potentially infectious blood or other bodily fluids of a patient in the course of employment, consent is required of the patient before a test for HIV may be performed. Consent may be provided by certain other individuals if the patient is not present and cannot be contacted or is incapacitated. This bill clarifies that the consent must be sought by a legal representative or administrator of the health care setting and that another individual who can authorize consent must be present. This bill also allows an HIV test to be conducted without consent if, despite a good faith effort to obtain consent, at least 8 hours have passed since exposure and:
1. The patient is incapacitated or is determined by that patient's attending health care provider to lack the mental capacity to provide such consent;
2. The patient is not expected to recover in time for the person who is exposed to receive appropriate medical treatment; and
3. There is not a person immediately available who has legal authority to consent in time for the person who is exposed to receive appropriate medical treatment.

Statutes affected:
Bill Text LD 2075, HP 1334: 5.19203