An Act relative to patient identity and privacy protection in waiting rooms
Generates a plain-language summary of the bill text and history.
| Date | Branch | Action |
|---|---|---|
| 1/7/2026 | Senate | Bill reported favorably by committee and referred to the committee on Senate Rules |
| 6/16/2025 | Joint | Hearing rescheduled to 06/23/2025 from 09:00 AM-01:00 PM in B-1 |
| 6/16/2025 | Joint | |
| 2/27/2025 | House | House concurred |
| 2/27/2025 | Senate | Referred to the committee on Public Health |
No additional cosponsors.
| Committee | Recommendation | Vote |
|---|---|---|
| J16 | Favorable | 1 entries |
Section 70E of chapter 111 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2022 Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after the word “law”, in line 46, the following words:- , provided that confidentiality shall extend to a facility’s common areas and waiting rooms.
Said section 70E, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by adding the following paragraph:- Providers shall develop and implement a system to protect the confidentiality of all patients and residents throughout the facility, including common areas and waiting rooms. Providers shall not be permitted to announce the first and or last name of patients in common areas and waiting rooms and shall implement a program that provides anonymity such as a patient numbering system or the use of electronic pagers.
SECTION 1. Section 70E of chapter 111 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2022 Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after the word “law”, in line 46, the following words:- , provided that confidentiality shall extend to a facility’s common areas and waiting rooms. SECTION 2. Said section 70E, as so appearing, is hereby further amended by adding the following paragraph:- Providers shall develop and implement a system to protect the confidentiality of all patients and residents throughout the facility, including common areas and waiting rooms. Providers shall not be permitted to announce the first and or last name of patients in common areas and waiting rooms and shall implement a program that provides anonymity such as a patient numbering system or the use of electronic pagers.