A new law that requires reports to law enforcement about juvenile victims of certain crimes will take effect on Sunday, December 1. Part I of S.L. 2019-245 (S 199) enacts new G.S. 14-318.6, which makes failing to report certain crimes against juveniles a misdemeanor. My colleague Sara DePasquale summarized the new law in this November 13 blog post.

As Sara explained, the new law is a universal reporting requirement, applying to all persons age 18 or older. While there are a few exceptions for some individuals with statutory privileges, there are no exceptions for physicians, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, or nurses. Those professionals are subject to the mandatory reporting law, but they are also subject to other laws, such as the HIPAA Privacy Rule, with which they must comply simultaneously.

I have been working with public health professionals in North Carolina to better understand their questions about the new law, and to develop educational materials for health departments about how their new obligations under the reporting law interact with their obligations under HIPAA. Some new resources about the law that are focused specifically on health departments are now available on the School of Government website. I explain the basics of the law in a 30-minute narrated PowerPoint presentation, available here. (Please note: The presentation is best viewed in a browser other than Chrome. If you use Chrome, you may experience problems with the audio or with the slides advancing. If that occurs, please try viewing in a different browser). A document with a brief summary of the legislation, followed by Q&As focused on local health departments, is available here.