Texas Peer Review Statute

The information on this page was last updated by Horty, Springer & Mattern on March 26, 2024.

TEXAS

PEER REVIEW

Tex. Health and Safety Code Ann. § 161.031. Medical Committee Defined

(a) In this subchapter, “medical committee” includes any committee, including a joint committee, of:

(1) a hospital;

(2) a medical organization;

(3) a university medical school or health science center;

(4) a health maintenance organization licensed under Chapter 843, Insurance Code, including an independent practice association or other physician association whose committee or joint committee is a condition of contract with the health maintenance organization;

(5) an extended care facility;

(6) a hospital district; or

(7) a hospital authority.

(b) The term includes a committee appointed ad hoc to conduct a specific investigation or established under state or federal law or rule or under the bylaws or rules of the organization or institution.

(c) The term includes a committee, including a joint committee, of one or more health care systems if each health care system includes one or more of the entities listed in Subsection (a).

§ 161.0315. Authority of Governing Body to Form Committee to Evaluate Medical and Health Care Services

(a) The governing body of a hospital, medical organization, university medical school or health science center, health maintenance organization, extended care facility, hospital district, or hospital authority may form a medical peer review committee, as defined by Section 151.002, Occupations Code, or a medical committee, as defined by Section 161.031, to evaluate medical and health care services, except as provided by this section.

(b) Except as provided by Subsection (d), a medical peer review committee or medical committee formed by the governing body of a hospital district may not evaluate medical and health care services provided by a health care facility that:

(1) contracts with the district to provide those services; and

(2) has formed a medical peer review committee or medical committee to evaluate the services provided by the facility.

(c) A hospital district may require in a contract with a health care facility described by Subsection (b) a provision that allows the governing body of the district to appoint a specified number of members to the facility’s medical peer review committee or medical committee to evaluate medical and health care services for which the district contracts with the facility to provide. The governing body of a hospital district may receive a report from the facility’s medical peer review committee or medical committee under this section in a closed meeting. A report, information, or a record that the district receives from the facility related to a review action conducted under the terms of the contract is:

(1) confidential;

(2) not subject to disclosure under Chapter 552, Government Code; and

(3) subject to the same confidentiality and disclosure requirements to which a report, information, or record of a medical peer review committee under Section 160.007, Occupations Code, is subject.

(d) If a hospital district and a health care facility described by Subsection (b) do not agree on a contract provision described by Subsection (c), the hospital district has, with respect to a review action for the evaluation of medical and health care services provided by the facility under a contract with the district, a right to:

(1) initiate the review action;

(2) appoint from the medical staff of the facility a number of members to the facility’s medical peer review committee or medical committee equal to the number of members appointed to the committee by the facility to conduct the review action, without regard to whether the district initiates the action; and

(3) receive records, information, or reports from the medical peer review committee or medical committee related to the review action.

(e) The governing body of a hospital district may receive a report under Subsection (d)(3) in a closed meeting. A report, information, or a record that the hospital district receives under Subsection (d)(3) is:

(1) confidential;

(2) not subject to disclosure under Chapter 552, Government Code; and

(3) subject to the same confidentiality and disclosure requirements to which a report, information, or record of a medical peer review committee under Section 160.007, Occupations Code, is subject.

(f) A medical peer review committee or medical committee formed by the governing body of a hospital district may compile a report, information, or record of the medical and health care services provided by a health care facility described by Subsection (b) and submit the compilation to the facility’s medical peer review committee or medical committee. A report, information, or record compiled under this subsection is:

(1) confidential;

(2) not subject to disclosure under Chapter 552, Government Code; and

(3) subject to the same confidentiality and disclosure requirements to which a report, information, or record of a medical peer review committee under Section 160.007, Occupations Code, is subject.

§161.032. Records and Proceedings Confidential

(a) The records and proceedings of a medical committee are confidential and are not subject to court subpoena.

(b) Notwithstanding Section 551.002, Government Code, the following proceedings may be held in a closed meeting following the procedures prescribed by Subchapter E, Chapter 551, Government Code.

(1) proceeding of a medical peer review committee, as defined by Section 151.002, Occupations Code, or medical committee; or

(2) a meeting of the governing body of a public hospital, hospital district, hospital authority, or health maintenance organization of a public hospital, hospital authority, hospital district, or state-owned teaching hospital at which the governing body receives records, information, or reports provided by a medical committee, medical peer review committee, or compliance officer.

(c) Records, information, or reports of a medical committee, medical peer review committee, or compliance officer and records, information, or reports provided by a medical committee, medical peer review committee, or compliance officer to the governing body of a public hospital, hospital district, or hospital authority are not subject to disclosure under Chapter 552, Government Code.

(d) The records and proceedings may be used by the committee and the committee members only in the exercise of proper committee functions.

(e) The records, information, and reports received or maintained by a compliance officer retain the protection provided by this section only if the records, information, ore reports are received, created, or maintained in the exercise of a proper function of the compliance officer as provided by the Office of Inspector General of the United States Department of Health and Human Services.

(f) This section and Subchapter A, Chapter 160, Occupations Code, do not apply to records made or maintained in the regular course of business by a hospital, health maintenance organization, medical organization, university medical center or health science center, hospital district, hospital authority, or extended care facility.

(g) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, the records of a medical committee of a university medical school or a health science center, including a joint committee, may be disclosed to the extent required under federal law as a condition on the receipt of federal money.

§161.033. Immunity for Committee Members

A member of a medical committee is not liable for damages to a person for an action taken or recommendation made within the scope of the functions of the committee if the committee member acts without malice and in the reasonable belief that the action or recommendation is warranted by the facts known to the committee member.

Tex. Occ. Code Ann § 151.002. Definitions

(a) In this subtitle:

(1) “Board” means the Texas Medical Board.

(2) “Continuing threat to the public welfare” means a real danger to the health of a physician’s patients or to the public from the acts or omissions of the physician caused through the physician’s lack of competence, impaired status, or failure to care adequately for the physician’s patients, as determined by:

(A) the board;

(B) a medical peer review committee in this state;

(D) a physician engaged in graduate medical education or training; or

(E) a medical student.

(3) “Disciplinary order” means an action taken under Section 164.001, 164.053, 164.058, or 164.101.

(4) “Doctor of osteopathic medicine” includes a doctor of osteopathy, an osteopath, an osteopathic physician, and an osteopathic surgeon.

(5) “Health care entity” means:

(A) a hospital licensed under Chapter 241 or 577, Health and Safety Code;

(B) an entity, including a health maintenance organization, group medical practice, nursing home, health science center, university medical school, hospital district, hospital authority, or other health care facility, that:

(i) provides or pays for medical care or health care services; and

(ii) follows a formal peer review process to further quality medical care or health care;

(C) a professional society or association of physicians, or a committee of such a society or association, that follows a formal peer review process to further quality medical care or health care; or

(D) an organization established by a professional society or association of physicians, hospitals, or both, that:

(i) collects and verifies the authenticity of documents and other information concerning the qualifications, competence, or performance of licensed health care professionals; and

(ii) acts as a health care facility’s agent under the Health Care Quality Improvement Act of 1986 (42 U.S.C. Section 11101 et seq.); or

(E) a health care collaborative certified under Chapter 848, Insurance Code.

(6) “Legally authorized representative” of a patient means:

(A) a parent or legal guardian if the patient is a minor;

(B) a legal guardian if the patient has been adjudicated incompetent to manage the patient’s personal affairs;

(D) an attorney ad litem appointed for the patient;

(E) a guardian ad litem appointed for the patient;

(F) a personal representative or statutory beneficiary if the patient is deceased; or

(G) an attorney retained by the patient or by another person listed by this subdivision.

(6-a) “License holder” means a person holding a license, permit, or certificate issued under this subtitle.

(6-b) “Maintenance of certification” means the satisfactory completion of periodic recertification requirements that are required for a physician to maintain certification after initial certification from:

(A) a medical specialty member board of the American Board of Medical Specialties;

(B) a medical specialty member board of the American Osteopathic Association Bureau of Osteopathic Specialists;

(D) any other certifying board that is recognized by the Texas Medical Board.

(7) “Medical peer review” or “professional review action” means the evaluation of medical and health care services, including evaluation of the qualifications and professional conduct of professional health care practitioners and of patient care provided by those practitioners. The term includes evaluation of the:

(A) merits of a complaint relating to a health care practitioner and a determination or recommendation regarding the complaint;

(B) accuracy of a diagnosis;

(D) report made to a medical peer review committee concerning activities under the committee’s review authority;

(E) report made by a medical peer review committee to another committee or to the board as permitted or required by law; and

(F) implementation of the duties of a medical peer review committee by a member, agent, or employee of the committee.

(8) “Medical peer review committee” or “professional review body” means a committee of a health care entity, the governing board of a health care entity, or the medical staff of a health care entity, that operates under written bylaws approved by the policy-making body or the governing board of the health care entity and is authorized to evaluate the quality of medical and health care services or the competence of physicians, including evaluation of the performance of those functions specified by Section 85.204, Health and Safety Code. The term includes:

(A) an employee or agent of the committee, including an assistant, investigator, intervenor, attorney, and any other person or organization that serves the committee; and

(B) the governing body of a public hospital owned or operated by a governmental entity, the governing body of a hospital authority created under Chapter 262 or 264, Health and Safety Code, and the governing body of a hospital district created under Article IX, Texas Constitution, but only:

(i) in relation to the governing body’s evaluation of the competence of a physician or the quality of medical and health care services provided by the public hospital, hospital authority, or hospital district; and

(ii) to the extent that the evaluation under Subparagraph (i) involves discussions or records that specifically or necessarily identify an individual patient or physician.

(9) “Medical records” means all records relating to the history, diagnosis, treatment, or prognosis of a patient.

(10) “Operation” means the application of surgery or the performance of surgical services.

(11) “Person” means an individual, unless the term is expressly made applicable to a partnership, association, or corporation.

(12) “Physician” means a person licensed to practice medicine in this state.

(13) “Practicing medicine” means the diagnosis, treatment, or offer to treat a mental or physical disease or disorder or a physical deformity or injury by any system or method, or the attempt to effect cures of those conditions, by a person who:

(A) publicly professes to be a physician or surgeon; or

(B) directly or indirectly charges money or other compensation for those services.

(14) “Surgery” includes:

(A) surgical services, procedures, and operations; and

(B) the procedures described in the surgery section of the common procedure coding system as adopted by the Health Care Financing Administration of the United States Department of Health and Human Services.

(b) The terms “physician” and “surgeon” are synonyms. As used in this subtitle, the terms “practitioner” and “practitioner of medicine” include physicians and surgeons.

§160.001. Application of Federal Law

The Health Care Quality Improvement Act of 1986 (42 U.S.C. Section 11101 et seq.) applies to a professional review action or medical peer review conducted by a professional review body or medical peer review committee in this state on or after September 1, 1987.

§160.007. Confidentiality Relating to Medical Peer Review Committee

(a) Except as otherwise provided by this subtitle, each proceeding or record of a medical peer review committee is confidential, and any communication made to a medical peer review committee is privileged.

(b) If a judge makes a preliminary finding that a proceeding or record of a medical peer review committee or a communication made to the committee is relevant to an anticompetitive action, or to a civil rights proceeding brought under 42 U.S.C. Section 1983, the proceeding, record, or communication is not confidential to the extent it is considered relevant.

(c) A record or proceeding of a medical peer review committee or a written or oral communication made to the committee may be disclosed to:

(1) another medical peer review committee;

(2) an appropriate state or federal agency;

(3) a national accreditation body;

(4) the board; or

(5) the state board of registration or licensing of physicians of another state.

(d) If a medical peer review committee takes action that could result in censure, suspension, restriction, limitation, revocation, or denial of membership or privileges in a health care entity, the affected physician shall be provided a written copy of the recommendation of the medical peer review committee and a copy of the final decision, including a statement of the basis for the decision. Disclosure to the affected physician of confidential peer review committee information relevant to the matter under review does not constitute waiver of the confidentiality requirements established under this subtitle.

(e) Unless disclosure is required or authorized by law, a record or determination of or a communication to a medical peer review committee is not subject to subpoena or discovery and is not admissible as evidence in any civil judicial or administrative proceeding without waiver of the privilege of confidentiality executed in writing by the committee. The evidentiary privileges created by this subtitle may be invoked by a person or organization in a civil judicial or administrative proceeding unless the person or organization secures a waiver of the privilege executed in writing by the chair, vice chair, or secretary of the affected medical peer review committee.

(f) If, under Sections 160.008(a) and (b), a person participating in peer review, a medical peer review committee, or a health care entity named as a defendant in a civil action filed as a result of participation in peer review may use otherwise confidential information in the defendant’s own defense, a plaintiff in the proceeding may disclose a record or determination of or a communication to a medical peer review committee in rebuttal to information supplied by the defendant.

(g) A person seeking access to privileged information must plead and prove waiver of the privilege. A member, employee, or agent of a medical peer review committee who provides access to an other-wise privileged communication or record in cooperation with a law enforcement authority in a criminal investigation is not considered to have waived any privilege established under this subtitle.

§ 160.008. Use of Certain Confidential Information

(a) This section applies to a person participating in peer review, a medical peer review committee, or a health care entity named as a defendant in a civil action filed as a result of participation in peer review.

(b) A defendant subject to this section may use otherwise confidential information obtained for legitimate internal business and professional purposes, including use in the defendant’s own defense. Use of confidential information under this subsection does not constitute a waiver of the confidential and privileged nature of medical peer review committee proceedings.

(c) A defendant subject to this section may file a counterclaim in a pending action or may prove a cause of action in a subsequent action to recover defense costs, including court costs, attorney’s fees, and damages incurred as a result of the civil action, if the plaintiff’s original action is determined to be frivolous or brought in bad faith.

§ 160.009. Compliance with Subpoena

(a) The governing body and medical staff of each health care entity and any other person shall comply with a subpoena for documents or information issued by the board under Section 153.007 or 204.308. The disclosure of documents or information under such a subpoena does not constitute a waiver of the privilege associated with medical peer review committee proceedings.

(b) Failure to comply with a subpoena under Subsection (a) constitutes grounds for disciplinary action against the person or entity by the appropriate licensing board.

§ 160.010. Immunity from Civil Liability

(a) The following are immune from civil liability:

(1) a person who, in good faith, reports or furnishes information to a medical peer review committee or the board;

(2) a member, employee, or agent of the board, a medical peer review committee, or a medical organization committee, or a medical organization district or local intervenor, who takes an action or makes a recommendation within the scope of the functions of the board, committee, or intervenor program, if that member, employee, agent, or intervenor acts without malice and in the reasonable belief that the action or recommendation is warranted by the facts known to that person; and

(3) a member or employee of the board or any person who assists the board in carrying out its duties or functions provided by law.

(b) A cause of action does not accrue against a member, agent, or employee of a medical peer review committee or against a health care entity from any act, statement, determination or recommendation made, or act reported, without malice, in the course of medical peer review.

(c) A person, medical peer review committee, or health care entity that, without malice, participates in medical peer review or furnishes records, information, or assistance to a medical peer review committee or the board is immune from any civil liability arising from that act.

(d) A person or health care entity required to report to the board may not be found liable in a civil action for failure to report to the board unless the failure was committed knowingly or wilfully, except that the appropriate state licensing body may take action against a licensed person or entity for not reporting as required under this subtitle.

(e) A member of an expert panel [of the board] under Section 154.056(e) and a person serving as a consultant to the board are immune from suit and judgment and may not be subjected to a suit for damages for any investigation, report, recommendation, statement, evaluation, finding, or other action taken without fraud or malice in the course of performing the person’s duties in evaluating a medical competency case. The attorney general shall represent a member of an expert panel or consultant in any suit resulting from a duty provided by the person in good faith to the board.