HIV AIDS Resource Guide/HIV-AIDS Resource Guide.iso/STAT/STATE/SCAR.ASC

Text File | 1993-01-14 | 25KB | 537 lines

/* SOUTH CAROLINA has mandatory testing for sex offenders; real
estate disclosure laws; insurance laws; criminal exposure laws;
and health care worker exposure laws, as well as warranty
disclaimers on blood and body parts. */



 16-3-740.  Required testing of certain convicted sex offenders
for Human Immunodeficiency Virus.

Within fifteen days of the conviction of any person for a crime
involving sexual battery as defined in Section 16-3-651 or sexual
conduct as defined in Section 16-3-800, if the conduct results in
the exposure of the victim to blood or vaginal or seminal fluids
of the convicted offender, the solicitor shall require that the
convicted offender be tested for Human Immunodeficiency Virus
(HIV), the virus that causes Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome
(AIDS). The test must be administered by the local public health
authority or the medical professional at the prison where the
convicted offender is imprisoned. The results of the test must be
reported to the South Carolina Department of Health and
Environmental Control and to the solicitor who ordered the test.
The solicitor shall notify the victim and the convicted sexual
offender of the test results. The convicted offender shall pay
for the test unless he is indigent, in which case the cost of the
test must be paid by the State.



 16-15-255.  Required testing of certain additional convicted sex
offenders for Human Immunodeficiency Virus.

Upon the conviction of any person for a violation of Section 16-
15-90, 16-15-100, 16-15-120, or 16-15-140, if the violation
results in the exposure of the victim to blood or vaginal or
seminal fluids of the convicted offender, the convicted offender
must be tested for Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), the virus
that causes Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS). The test
must be administered by the local public health authority or the
medical professional at the prison if the convicted offender is
imprisoned. The results of the test must be reported to the South
Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control, to the
convicted offender, and to any person who may have been exposed
as a direct result of the act leading to the conviction. The
convicted offender shall pay for the test unless he is indigent,
in which case the cost of the test must be paid by the State.



 38-7-30. Eligibility for pool coverage.

(A) Any person who is a resident of this State for six months and
his newborn child is eligible for pool coverage upon providing
evidence of any of the following actions by an insurer on an
application for health insurance comparable to that provided by
the pool submitted on behalf of the person:

(1)  a refusal to issue the insurance for health reasons;

(2)  a refusal to issue the insurance except with a reduction or
exclusion of coverage for a preexisting health condition for a
period exceeding twelve months, unless it is determined that the
person voluntarily terminated his or did not seek any health
insurance coverage before being refused issuance except with a
reduction or exclusion for a preexisting health condition, and
then seeks to be eligible for pool coverage after the health
condition develops. This determination must be made by the board;

(3)  a refusal to issue insurance coverage comparable to that
provided by the pool except at a rate exceeding one hundred and
fifty percent of the pool rate.

(B)  A person whose health insurance coverage is terminated
involuntarily for any reason other than nonpayment of premium may
apply for coverage under the plan but shall submit proof of
eligibility according to subsection (A) of this section. If proof
is supplied and if coverage is applied for within sixty days
after the involuntary termination and if premiums are paid for
the entire coverage period, the effective date of the coverage is
the date of termination of the previous coverage. Waiting period
and preexisting condition exclusions are waived to the extent to
which similar exclusions, if any, have been satisfied under the
prior health insurance coverage. The waiver does not apply to a
person whose policy has been terminated or rescinded
involuntarily because of a material misrepresentation. The board
shall require an additional premium for coverage effected under
the plan in this manner notwithstanding the premium limitation
stated in Section 38-74-60.

(C)  A person who is paying a premium for health insurance
comparable to the pool plan in excess of one hundred fifty
percent of the pool rate or who has received notice that the
premium for a policy would be in excess of one hundred fifty
percent of the pool rate may make application for coverage under
the pool. The effective date of coverage is the date of the
application, or the date that the premium is paid if later, and
any waiting period or preexisting condition exclusion is waived
to the extent to which similar exclusions, if any, were satisfied
under the prior health insurance plan. Benefits payable under the
pool plan are secondary to benefits payable by the previous plan.
The board shall require an additional premium for coverage
effected under the plan in this manner notwithstanding the
premium limitation stated in Section 38-74-60.

(D)  A person not eligible for pool coverage is one who meets any
one of the following criteria:

(1)  a person who has coverage under health insurance comparable
to that offered by the pool from an insurer or any other source
except a person who would be eligible under subsection (C) of
this section;

(2)  a person who is eligible for health insurance comparable to
that offered by the pool from an insurer or any other source
except a person who would be eligible for pool coverage under
Section 38-74-30(A)(2) or 38-74-30(A)(3);

(3)  a person who at the time of pool application is eligible for
health care benefits under state Medicaid or Medicare;

(4)  a person having terminated coverage in the pool unless
twelve months have lapsed since termination unless termination
was because of ineligibility;

(5)  a person on whose behalf the pool has paid out two hundred
fifty thousand dollars in benefits;

(6)  inmates of public institutions and persons eligible for
public programs;

(7)  a person who fails to maintain South Carolina residency;

(8)  a person who has been diagnosed as being infected with
acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS).

(E)  Any person who ceases to meet the eligibility requirements
of this section may be terminated at the end of the policy
period.



 40-57-270.  Psychological stigmas on real property;
nondisclosure; misrepresentation.

(A) The fact or suspicion that a property may be or is
psychologically impacted, as a result of facts or suspicions that
the death of an occupant of the real property has occurred or may
have occurred upon the real property, or the manner of death
where death has occurred, or that an occupant was inflicted with
or died from Human Immunodeficiency Virus or diagnosed with
Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome, or any other disease which
has been determined y medical evidence to be highly unlikely to
be transmitted through the occupancy of a dwelling place is not a
material fact that must be disclosed in a real estate
transaction.

(B)  No cause of action may arise against an owner of real estate
or his agent for the failure to disclose to the transferee that
the transferred property was psychologically impacted as
described in subsection (A) of this section.

(C)  This section does not relieve an owner or agent of an
obligation to disclose the physical condition of the premises.

(D)  Nothing in this section immunizes an owner or his agent from
making an intentional misrepresentation in response to a direct
inquiry from a transferee or a prospective transferee of real
property, concerning psychological impacts or stigmas associated
with real property.



 44-29-20.  Transportation and handling of human remains infected
by dangerous, contagious, or infectious disease.

Prior to transportation of human remains known to be infected by
any dangerous, contagious, or infectious disease into, through,
or out of this State or any city, town, or county within this
State, the hospital, health or medical clinic, physician, medical
facility, person, or other entity in possession of the human
remains shall inform any funeral director, ambulance driver, or
any other person or entity who is to transport the remains that
the remains are infected by a dangerous, contagious, or
infectious disease.

In the event that human remains as described above are not to be
moved immediately but are to be operated on for purposes of
autopsy or otherwise handled, any doctor, technician, or other
person charged with the responsibility of handling the remains
known to be infected by any dangerous, contagious, or infectious
disease must be informed that the remains are so infected.

For the purpose of enforcing this section, the Department of.
Health and Environmental Control (department) shall make and
distribute, at intervals considered necessary by the department,
to all hospitals, health or medical clinics, other medical
facilities, persons, or other entities who may normally be in
possession of human remains a list declaring what diseases are
regarded as dangerous, contagious, or infectious and shall
classify these diseases and shall designate the diseases as are
of so dangerous a character that transportation of human remains
infected by them is forbidden except under conditions as
prescribed by the department which it considers proper for the
transportation those remains.



 44-29-60.  Sexually transmitted diseases declared dangerous to
public health; infection of another with sexually transmitted
disease.

Sexually transmitted diseases which are included in the annual
Department of Health and Environmental Control List of Reportable
Diseases are declared to be contagious, infectious, communicable,
and dangerous to the public health. Sexually transmitted diseases
include all venereal diseases. It is unlawful for anyone infected
with these diseases to knowingly expose another to infection.



 44-29-70.  Reports of cases of sexually transmitted diseases.

Any physician or other person who makes a diagnosis of or treats
a case of a sexually transmitted disease and any superintendent
or manager of a hospital, dispensary, health care related
facility, or charitable or penal institution in which there is a
case of a sexually transmitted disease shall report it to the
health authorities according to the form and manner as the
Department of Health and Environmental Control directs.



 44-29-80.  Laboratories shall report positive tests and
cooperate in preventing spread of sexually transmitted disease.

Any laboratory performing a positive laboratory test for a
sexually transmitted disease shall make a report of the case or
positive laboratory test for a sexually transmitted disease to
the Department of Health and Environmental Control in the form
and manner as the department directs and shall cooperate with the
Department of Health and Environmental Control and local boards
of health in preventing the spread of sexually transmitted
diseases.



 44-29-90.  Examination, treatment and isolation of persons
infected with venereal disease.

State, district, county, and municipal health officers, in their
respective jurisdictions, when in their judgment it is necessary
to protect the public health, shall make examination of persons
infected or suspected of being infected with a sexually
transmitted disease, require persons infected with a sexually
transmitted disease to report for treatment appropriate for their
particular disease provided at public expense, and request the
identification of persons with whom they have had sexual contact
or intravenous drug use contact, or both. The health officer may
isolate persons infected or reasonably suspected of being
infected with a sexually transmitted disease. To the extent
resources are available to the Department of Health and
Environmental Control for this purpose, when a person is
identified as being infected with Human Immunodeficiency Virus
(HIV), the virus which causes Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome
(AIDS), his known sexual contacts or intravenous drug use
contacts, or both, must be notified but the identity of the
person infected must not be revealed. Efforts to notify these
contacts may be limited to the extent of information provided by
the person infected with HIV. Public monies appropriated for
treatment of persons infected with a sexually transmitted disease
must be expended in accordance with priorities established by the
department, taking into account the cost effectiveness, curative
capacity of the treatment, and the public health benefit to the
population of the State.



44-29-100 Examination and treatment of prisoners for sexually

Any person who is confined or imprisoned in any state, county, or
city prison of this State may be examined and treated for a
sexually transmitted disease by the health authorities or their
deputies. The state, county, and municipal boards of health may
take over a portion of any state, county, or city prison for use
as a board of health hospital. Persons who are confined or
imprisoned and who are suffering with a sexually transmitted
disease at the time of expiration of their terms of imprisonment
must be isolated and treated at public expense as provided in
Section 44-29-90 until, in the judgment of the local health
officer, the prisoner may be medically discharged. In lieu of
isolation, the person, in the discretion of the board of health,
may be required to report for treatment to a licensed physician
or submit for treatment provided at public expense by the
Department of Health and Environmental Control as provided in
Section 44-29-90.



 44-29-110. No discharge from confinement until cured of venereal
disease; subsequent treatment.

No person suffering from any of the sexually transmitted diseases
described in Section 44-29-60 may be discharged from confinement
unless he is pronounced cured of the disease by a state, county,
or municipal health officer or, if no cure is available, upon the
recommendation of the Department of Health and Environmental
Control. If any person is released before a complete cure of the
sexually transmitted disease of which he is suffering, the
department shall direct the individual as to whom to report for
further treatment, and failure to report at the stated intervals
as directed, in each instance, constitutes a violation of the
provisions of Sections 44-29-60 to 44-29-140 and subjects him,
upon conviction, to the penalty set forth in Section 44-29-140.



 44-29-115. Procedure for isolation.

If the Department of Health and Environmental Control believes
that a person must be isolated pursuant to Section 44-29-90, 44-
29-100, or 44-29-110, it shall file a petition with the probate
court of the county where the person is located or where the
person resides. The complaint must state the specific harm
thought probable and the factual basis for this belief. If the
court, after due notice and hearing, is satisfied that the
petition is well-founded, may order that the person must be
isolated.

Any person isolated pursuant to Section 44-29-90, 44-29-100, or
44-29-1 has the right to appeal to any court having jurisdiction
for review of the evidence under which he was isolated.

A court may not order isolation for more than ninety days. If the
department determines that the grounds for isolation no longer
exist, it shall file a notice of intent to discharge with the
court before the person isolated is released.

The person for whom isolation is sought must be represented by
counsel all proceedings and, if he cannot afford to hire an
attorney, the court shall appoint an attorney to represent him.
The attorney for the person isolate must have access to any
documents regarding the isolation.



 44-29-130. Adoption of regulations pertaining to sexually
transmitted disease.

The Department of Health and Environmental Control shall
promulgate regulations necessary to carry out the purposes of
Sections 44-29-60 to 44-29-140, other than Section 44-29-120,
including regulations providing for labor on the part of isolated
persons considered necessary to provide in whole or in part for
their subsistence and to safeguard their general health and
regulations concerning sexually transmitted diseases as it
considers advisable. All regulations so made are binding upon all
county and municipal health officers and other persons affected
by Sections 44-29-60 to 44-29-140.



 44-29-135. Confidentiality of sexually transmitted disease
records.

All information and records held by the Department of Health and
Environmental Control and its agents relating to a known or
suspected case of a sexually transmitted disease are strictly
confidential except as provided in this section. The information
must not be released or made public, upon subpoena or otherwise,
except under the following circumstances:

(a)  release is made of medical or epidemiological information
for statistical purposes in a manner that no individual person
can be identified; or

(b)  release is made of medical or epidemiological information
with the consent of all persons identified in the information
released;

(c)  release is made of medical or epidemiological information to
the extent necessary to enforce the provisions of this chapter
and related regulations concerning the control and treatment of a
sexually transmitted disease;

(d)  release is made of medical or epidemiological information to
medical personnel to the extent necessary to protect the health
or life of any person; or

(e)  in cases involving a minor, the name of the minor and
medical information concerning the minor must be reported to
appropriate agents if a report is required by the Child
Protection Act of 1977. No further information is required to be
released by the department. If a minor has Acquired
Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS) or is infected with Human
Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), the virus that causes AIDS, and is
attending the public schools, the superintendent of the school
district and the nurse or other health professional assigned to
the school the minor attends must be notified.



 44-29-136.  Court orders for disclosure of records for law
enforcement purposes; confidentiality safeguards.

(A) A portion of a person's sexually transmitted disease test
results disclosed to a solicitor or state criminal law
enforcement agency pursuant to Section 44-29-135(c) must be
obtained by court order upon a finding by the court that the
request is valid under Section 44-29-135(c) and that there is a
compelling need for the test results. In determining a compelling
need, the court must weigh the need for disclosure against both
the privacy interest of the test subject and the potential harm
to the public interest if disclosure deters future Human
Immunodeficiency Virus-related testing and counselling or blood,
organ, and semen donation. No information regarding persons other
than the subject of the test results must be released. The court
shall provide the department and the person who is the subject of
the test results with notice and an opportunity to participate in
the court hearing.

(B) No court may issue an order solely on the basis of anonymous
tips or anonymous information. A person who provides information
relied upon by a law enforcement agency or solicitor to obtain
records under Section 44-29-l35(c) shall sign a sworn affidavit
setting forth the facts upon which he bases his allegations. This
person shall appear and be subject to examination and cross-
examination at the hearing to determine whether an order
requiring disclosure should be granted.

(C) Pleadings pertaining to disclosure of test results must
substitute a pseudonym for the true name of the subject of the
test. The disclosure to the parties of the subject's true name
must be communicated in documents sealed by the court. Court
proceedings must be conducted in camera unless the subject of the
test results requests a hearing in open court. All files
regarding the court proceedings must be sealed unless waived by
the subject of the test results.

(D) Upon issuance of an order to disclose the test results
pursuant to Section 44-29-135(c), the court may impose
appropriate safeguards against the unauthorized disclosure of the
information including, but not limited to, specifying who may
have access to the information, the purposes for which the
information must be used, and prohibitions against further
disclosure of the information.



 44-29-140. Penalties pertaining to venereal disease.

Any person who violates any of the provisions of Sections 44-29-
60 to 44-29-140, other than Section 44-29-1 20, or any regulation
made by the Department of Health and Environmental Control
pursuant to the authority granted by law, or fails or refuses to
obey any lawful order issued by any state, county, or municipal
health officer, pursuant to Sections 44-29-60 to 44-29-140, or
any other law or the regulations prescribed by law, is guilty of
a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, must be fined not more than
two hundred dollars or be imprisoned for not more than thirty
days.



 44-29-145. Penalty for exposing others to Human Immunodeficiency
Virus.

It is unlawful for a person who knows that he is infected with
Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) to:

(1)  knowingly engage in sexual intercourse, vaginal, anal, or
oral, with another person without first informing that person of
his HIV infection;

(2)  knowingly commit an act of prostitution with another person;

(3)  knowingly sell or donate blood, blood products, semen,
tissue, organs, or other body fluids;

(4)  forcibly engage in sexual intercourse, vaginal, anal, or
oral, without the consent of the other person, including one's
legal spouse; or

(5)  knowingly share with another person a hypodermic needle,
syringe, or both, for the introduction of drugs or any other
substance into, or for the withdrawal of blood or body fluids
from the other person's body without first informing that person
that the needle, syringe, or both, has been used by someone
infected with HIV.

A person who violates this section is guilty of a felony and,
upon conviction, must be fined not more than five thousand
dollars or imprisoned for not more than ten years.



 44-29-146. Physicians and state agencies exempt from liability
for disclosure of persons carrying Human Immunodeficiency Virus;
"contact" defined.

A physician or state agency identifying and notifying a spouse or
known contact of a person having Human Immunodeficiency Virus
(HIV) infection or Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS) is
not liable for damages resulting from the disclosure.

"Contact" means the exchange of body products or body Fluids by
sexual acts or percutaneous transmission.



 44-29-230. Testing required when health care worker exposed to
Human Immunodeficiency Virus.

While working with a patient or a patient's blood or body fluids,
if a health care worker is involved in an incident resulting in
possible exposure to Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), and a
health care professional has probable cause to believe that the
incident may have caused infection, the professional may require
the patient to be tested. The test results must be given to the
professional who shall report the results to the worker and
patient.



 44-43-10.  Certain warranties shall not be applicable to
transfers of human tissues and blood.

The implied warranties of merchantability and fitness shall not
be applicable to a contract for the sale, procurement,
processing, distribution or use of human tissues such as corneas,
bones or organs, whole blood, plasma, blood products or blood
derivatives. Such human tissues, whole blood, plasma, blood
products or blood derivatives shall not be considered commodities
subject to sale or barter and the transplanting, injection,
transfusion or other transfer of such substances into the human
body shall be considered a medical service.