A Bill for an Act
Page 1, Line 101Concerning protections related to a legally protected
Page 1, Line 102health-care activity.
Bill Summary
(Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced and does not reflect any amendments that may be subsequently adopted. If this bill passes third reading in the house of introduction, a bill summary that applies to the reengrossed version of this bill will be available at http://leg.colorado.gov.)
The bill clarifies that requirements for out-of-state telehealth providers do not alter or limit the rights and protections afforded to a person concerning a legally protected health-care activity.
Current law requires a prescription drug label to include the name of the prescribing practitioner. At the practitioner's request, the bill authorizes a prescription label for mifepristone, misoprostol, and the generic alternatives to those prescriptions to include only the name of the prescribing health-care practice instead of the name of the practitioner.
The bill requires any person requesting a subpoena to affirm under penalty of perjury that the subpoena:
- Is not related to, and any information obtained will not be used in, any investigation or proceeding that seeks to impose civil or criminal liability or professional sanctions against a person or entity that engaged in or attempted or intended to engage in a legally protected health-care activity or who provided insurance coverage for gender-affirming health-care services or reproductive health care; or
- Is related to such an investigation or proceeding, but the investigation or proceeding is brought under tort law or contract law by the person who engaged in or attempted or intended to engage in a legally protected health-care activity, gender-affirming health-care services, or reproductive health care, and is actionable in an equivalent or similar manner under Colorado law.
The bill prohibits any person residing in Colorado, or partnership, corporation, trust, or limited liability company that is located, headquartered, or has its principal place of business in Colorado (Colorado business) from responding to a civil, criminal, regulatory, or administrative inquiry, investigation, subpoena, or summons concerning an individual who engaged in or attempted or intended to engage in a legally protected health-care activity or concerning an entity that provides insurance coverage for gender-affirming health-care services or reproductive health care. A person or Colorado business may respond to an inquiry, investigation, subpoena, or summons after certain conditions are met.
If a person or entity brings an out-of-state civil or criminal action, or attempts to enforce any order or judgment issued in connection with an action, against another person or entity for engaging in or attempting or intending to engage in a legally protected health-care activity or for providing insurance coverage for gender-affirming health-care services or reproductive health care, the person or entity subject to the out-of-state civil or criminal action has a private right of action against the person or entity and may institute a civil action in district court within 3 years after the date of the alleged violation.
Current law authorizes a private person to arrest a person without a warrant upon reasonable information that the person is charged in another state with a crime punishable by death or imprisonment for a term exceeding one year. The bill creates an exception if the person is charged in another state for engaging in a legally protected health-care activity in Colorado.
Current law prohibits a public agency from expending government resources or providing information or data in furtherance of any out-of-state investigation or proceeding seeking to impose civil or criminal liability or professional sanction upon a person or entity for engaging in a legally protected health-care activity. The bill expands the prohibition to public entities, which includes state and local governments.
The bill grants the attorney general the authority to enforce the provisions of the bill.
Page 3, Line 1Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Colorado:
Page 3, Line 2SECTION 1. In Colorado Revised Statutes, 12-30-124, add (16) as follows:
Page 3, Line 312-30-124. Out-of-state telehealth providers - registration -
Page 3, Line 4financial responsibility - discipline - emergency protocol - disclosures
Page 3, Line 5- prescriptions - rules - applicability - definitions. (16) This section
Page 3, Line 6does not alter or limit the rights and protections afforded to a
Page 3, Line 7person concerning a legally protected health-care activity, as defined in section 12-30-121.
Page 3, Line 8SECTION 2. In Colorado Revised Statutes, 12-280-124, amend (2) as follows:
Page 3, Line 912-280-124. Labeling - rules - definitions. (2) (a) Except as
Page 3, Line 10otherwise required by law, any drug dispensed pursuant to a prescription
Page 3, Line 11order must bear a label prepared and placed on or securely attached to the
Page 3, Line 12medicine container stating at least the name and address of the
Page 3, Line 13prescription drug outlet, the serial number and the date of the prescription
Page 3, Line 14or of its dispensing, the name of the drug dispensed unless otherwise
Page 3, Line 15requested by the practitioner, the name of the practitioner, the name of the
Page 3, Line 16patient, and, if stated in the prescription, the directions for use and cautionary statements, if any, contained in the prescription.
Page 3, Line 17(b) Notwithstanding the labeling requirements described
Page 4, Line 1in subsection (2)(a) of this section, at the practitioner's request,
Page 4, Line 2a prescription label for mifepristone, misoprostol, or the generic
Page 4, Line 3alternatives to those prescriptions may include the name of the
Page 4, Line 4prescribing health-care practice instead of the name of the
Page 4, Line 5practitioner, provided the practitioner includes the name of the
Page 4, Line 6health-care practice on the paper or electronic form of the prescription.
Page 4, Line 7SECTION 3. In Colorado Revised Statutes, add 13-1-140.1 as follows:
Page 4, Line 813-1-140.1. Subpoena requirements - legally protected
Page 4, Line 9health-care activity - enforcement. (1) Affirmation required.An
Page 4, Line 10individual requesting a subpoena shall affirm under penalty of perjury that the subpoena:
Page 4, Line 11(a) Is not related to, and any information obtained as a
Page 4, Line 12result of the subpoena will not be used in, any investigation or
Page 4, Line 13proceeding that seeks to impose civil or criminal liability or
Page 4, Line 14professional sanctions against an individual or entity that
Page 4, Line 15engaged in or attempted or intended to engage in a legally
Page 4, Line 16protected health-care activity, as defined in section 12-30-121,
Page 4, Line 17or that provided insurance coverage for gender-affirming
Page 4, Line 18health-care services, as defined in section 12-30-121, or reproductive health care, as defined in section 25-6-402; or
Page 4, Line 19(b) Is related to an investigation or proceeding that seeks
Page 4, Line 20to impose civil or criminal liability or professional sanctions
Page 4, Line 21against an individual or entity that engaged in or attempted or
Page 4, Line 22intended to engage in a legally protected health-care activity,
Page 4, Line 23as defined in section 12-30-121, or that provided insurance
Page 5, Line 1coverage for gender-affirming health-care services, as defined
Page 5, Line 2in section 12-30-121, or reproductive health care, as defined in section 25-6-402, but the investigation or proceeding:
Page 5, Line 3(I) Is brought under tort law or contract law;
Page 5, Line 4(II) Is actionable in an equivalent or similar manner under Colorado law; and
Page 5, Line 5(III) Is brought by the individual, or the individual's legal
Page 5, Line 6representative, who received gender-affirming health-care services or reproductive health care.
Page 5, Line 7(2) Jurisdiction and penalty.An individual who omits or
Page 5, Line 8submits a false affirmation pursuant to subsection (1) of this
Page 5, Line 9section is subject to the jurisdiction of Colorado courts for any
Page 5, Line 10action, penalties, or damages arising out of the omission or false
Page 5, Line 11affirmation. The court, upon finding the omission or false
Page 5, Line 12affirmation was made intentionally, knowingly, willfully, or
Page 5, Line 13recklessly, shall impose a civil penalty in an amount not to
Page 5, Line 14exceed fifteen thousand dollars for each violation, which
Page 5, Line 15amount is in addition to any other legal or equitable remedy lawfully available.
Page 5, Line 16(3) Enforcement.The attorney general may bring a civil
Page 5, Line 17action on behalf of the state to seek the imposition of damages,
Page 5, Line 18penalties, and any other equitable remedies against an
Page 5, Line 19individual who omits or submits a false affirmation pursuant to
Page 5, Line 20subsection (1) of this section. The action must be filed within six years after the date of the alleged violation.
Page 5, Line 21(4) This section does not prohibit the investigation of
Page 5, Line 22criminal activity that may involve a legally protected
Page 6, Line 1health-care activity, provided that information relating to a
Page 6, Line 2medical procedure performed on an individual is not shared with
Page 6, Line 3a federal agency or actor, or an agency or individual from
Page 6, Line 4another state, for the purpose of enforcing another state's abortion law.
Page 6, Line 6SECTION 4. In Colorado Revised Statutes, 13-21-133, amend (1) as follows:
Page 6, Line 713-21-133. Out-of-state civil action against a person or entity
Page 6, Line 8prohibited - legally protected health-care activity - out-of-state civil
Page 6, Line 9judgment. (1) (a) It is against the public policy of this state for the law
Page 6, Line 10of another state to authorize a person to bring a civil action against
Page 6, Line 11another person or entity for engaging or attempting or intending to engage
Page 6, Line 12in a legally protected health-care activity, as defined in section 12-30-121,
Page 6, Line 13
(1)(d),Page 6, Line 14health-care services, as defined in section 12-30-121,
(1)(c),(4).Page 6, Line 15(b) (I) If a person or entity brings an out-of-state civil or
Page 6, Line 16criminal action, or attempts to enforce any order or judgment
Page 6, Line 17issued in connection with any such action, against another
Page 6, Line 18person or entity for engaging in or attempting or intending to
Page 6, Line 19engage in a legally protected health-care activity, as defined
Page 6, Line 20in section 12-30-121, or for providing insurance coverage for
Page 6, Line 21gender-affirming health-care services, as defined in section
Page 6, Line 2212-30-121, or reproductive health care, as defined in section
Page 6, Line 2325-6-402, the person or entity subject to the out-of-state civil or
Page 6, Line 24criminal action has a private right of action against the person
Page 7, Line 1or entity and, within six years after the date the out-of-state
Page 7, Line 2action is commenced, or if the person or entity is attempting to
Page 7, Line 3enforce an out-of-state order or judgment, six years after the
Page 7, Line 4date enforcement is attempted, may institute a civil action in
Page 7, Line 5district court for injunctive relief; actual damages, including
Page 7, Line 6the amount of any judgment issued in connection with the
Page 7, Line 7out-of-state action, along with any expenses, costs, or
Page 7, Line 8reasonable attorney fees incurred in connection with the
Page 7, Line 9out-of-state action and civil action filed pursuant to this section; and any other appropriate remedy.
Page 7, Line 10(II) The attorney general may intervene in any
Page 7, Line 11out-of-state action brought against the state pursuant to this subsection (1)(b).
Page 7, Line 12SECTION 5. In Colorado Revised Statutes, amend 16-19-115 as follows:
Page 7, Line 1316-19-115. Arrest without warrant.Except in cases arising
Page 7, Line 14pursuant to section 16-19-107 (2), the arrest of a person may be
Page 7, Line 15lawfully made
alsoPage 7, Line 16warrant upon reasonable information that the accused stands charged in
Page 7, Line 17the courts of a state with a crime punishable by death or imprisonment for
Page 7, Line 18a term exceeding one year.
When so arrestedPage 7, Line 19before a judge with all practicable speed, and a complaint must be made
Page 7, Line 20against
himgroundPage 7, Line 21arrest as in section 16-19-114; and thereafter
hisshallhePage 7, Line 22SECTION 6. In Colorado Revised Statutes, 24-31-101, amend
Page 7, Line 23(1)(i)(XXII); and add (1)(i)(XXIV), (1)(i)(XXV), and (1)(i)(XXVI) as follows:
Page 8, Line 124-31-101. Powers and duties of attorney general. (1) The attorney general:
Page 8, Line 2(i) May independently initiate and bring civil and criminal actions to enforce state laws, including actions brought pursuant to:
Page 8, Line 3(XXII) Part 14 of article 12 of title 38;
and(XXIV) Section 13-1-140.1;
Page 8, Line 4(XXV) Section 13-1-140.2; and
(XXVI) Article 116 of title 24.
Page 8, Line 5SECTION 7. In Colorado Revised Statutes, amend 24-116-101 as follows:
Page 8, Line 624-116-101. Prohibition on providing information or
Page 8, Line 7expending government resources - legally protected health-care
Page 8, Line 8activity. A public
agencyorPage 8, Line 9employee, appointee, officer, official, or any other person acting on
Page 8, Line 10behalf of a public
agencyPage 8, Line 11regulated by the state, shall not provide any information or expend
Page 8, Line 12or use time, money, facilities, property, equipment, personnel, or other
Page 8, Line 13resources in furtherance of any out-of-state investigation, or, to the
Page 8, Line 14extent constitutionally permissible, any federal investigation
Page 8, Line 15or proceeding seeking to impose civil or criminal liability or professional
Page 8, Line 16sanction upon a person or entity for engaging in a legally protected health-care activity, as defined in section 12-30-121.
(1)(d).Page 8, Line 17SECTION 8. In Colorado Revised Statutes, 24-116-102, amend (1) and (2) as follows:
Page 8, Line 1824-116-102. Prohibition on assisting another state - legally
Page 8, Line 19protected health-care activity. (1) A
state agency or executivePage 9, Line 1
departmentPage 9, Line 2person or entity licensed or regulated by the state, shall not
Page 9, Line 3provide information or data, including patient medical records,
Page 9, Line 4patient-level data, or related billing information, or expend time, money,
Page 9, Line 5facilities, property, equipment, personnel, or other resources for the
Page 9, Line 6purpose of assisting or furthering an investigation or proceeding initiated
Page 9, Line 7in or by another state, or, to the extent constitutionally
Page 9, Line 8permissible, initiated by the federal government, that seeks to
Page 9, Line 9impose criminal or civil liability or professional sanction upon a person
Page 9, Line 10or entity for engaging in a legally protected health-care activity, as defined in section 12-30-121.
(1)(d).Page 9, Line 11(2) Notwithstanding subsection (1) of this section,
an agency orPage 9, Line 12
executive departmentPage 9, Line 13or regulated by the state, may provide information or assistance in
Page 9, Line 14connection with an investigation or proceeding in response to a written request from the subject of the investigation or proceeding.
Page 9, Line 15SECTION 9. In Colorado Revised Statutes, add 24-116-103 as follows:
Page 9, Line 1624-116-103. Enforcement by the attorney general.The
Page 9, Line 17attorney general has the sole discretion to enforce any action
Page 9, Line 18brought pursuant to this article 116 and any related legal action brought on behalf of the state.
Page 9, Line 19SECTION 10. In Colorado Revised Statutes, add 25-2-108.5 as follows:
Page 9, Line 2025-2-108.5. Reports of induced terminations of pregnancy -
Page 9, Line 21confidentiality - penalty. (1) The department of public health and
Page 9, Line 22environment shall not collect the following information as
Page 10, Line 1part of any required reporting of induced terminations of pregnancy:
Page 10, Line 2(a) The patient's name, date of birth, address, employer, spouse's name, or parent's or legal guardian's name; or
Page 10, Line 3(b) The city or town where the termination of pregnancy occurred.
Page 10, Line 4(2) Reports of induced terminations of pregnancy
Page 10, Line 5collected by the department of public health and environment
Page 10, Line 6must only be used for compilation of statistical reports and
Page 10, Line 7must not be incorporated into the official records of the office
Page 10, Line 8of the state registrar of vital statistics. The state registrar
Page 10, Line 9shall dispose of any reports of induced terminations of
Page 10, Line 10pregnancy when all statistical processing of the reports have been accomplished.
Page 10, Line 11(3) The department of public health and environment may
Page 10, Line 12collect reports of induced terminations of pregnancy from health-care facilities and providers no more than once a month.
Page 10, Line 13(4) (a) Reports of induced terminations of pregnancy
Page 10, Line 14collected by the department of public health and environment
Page 10, Line 15and statistical analysis of the reports must remain confidential
Page 10, Line 16and must not be released, shared with any state or federal
Page 10, Line 17agency or institution, or made public upon the issuance of a
Page 10, Line 18subpoena or search warrant or during a discovery proceeding;
Page 10, Line 19except that an aggregate-level summary of reports may be released to the extent required by law, or as necessary to:
Page 10, Line 20(I) Promote equitable access to patient-centered, quality
Page 10, Line 21contraceptive services in Colorado;
(II) Reduce unintended pregnancies; and
Page 11, Line 1(III) Monitor changes in clinical practice patterns related to abortion care.
Page 11, Line 2(b) The department of public health and environment
Page 11, Line 3shall limit the disclosure of personally identifying information
Page 11, Line 4to the minimum amount necessary to accomplish the public health purpose of disclosing the information.
Page 11, Line 5(c) Notwithstanding this subsection (4) to the contrary,
Page 11, Line 6information collected that has fewer than ten records must not be released under any circumstance.
Page 11, Line 7(5) An officer, employee, or agent of the department of
Page 11, Line 8public health and environment or an officer, employee, or agent
Page 11, Line 9of a county, district, or municipal public health agency is not
Page 11, Line 10required to participate or testify in a judicial, executive,
Page 11, Line 11legislative, or other proceeding that concerns the existence or content of an individual report.
Page 11, Line 12(6) A person who violates this section by releasing or
Page 11, Line 13disclosing confidential information or by disclosing
Page 11, Line 14information without authorization commits a data privacy
Page 11, Line 15breach and is subject to the provisions of section 24-74-107. Each
Page 11, Line 16unauthorized disclosure of information constitutes a separate offense.
Page 11, Line 17SECTION 11. In Colorado Revised Statutes, amend 24-74-107 as follows:
Page 11, Line 1824-74-107. Data privacy breaches - accountability provisions.
Page 11, Line 19Any state agency employee who intentionally violates the provisions of
Page 11, Line 20this article 74 or section 25-2-108.5 is subject to an injunction and is
Page 12, Line 1liable for a civil penalty of not more than fifty thousand dollars for each violation.
Page 12, Line 2SECTION 12. Severability. If any provision of this act or the
Page 12, Line 3application of this act to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the
Page 12, Line 4invalidity does not affect other provisions or applications of the act that
Page 12, Line 5can be given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to this end the provisions of this act are declared to be severable.
Page 12, Line 6SECTION 13. Safety clause. The general assembly finds,
Page 12, Line 7determines, and declares that this act is necessary for the immediate
Page 12, Line 8preservation of the public peace, health, or safety or for appropriations for
Page 12, Line 9the support and maintenance of the departments of the state and state institutions.