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HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 533 FILED ON: 1/13/2023
HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 3625
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
_________________
PRESENTED BY:
Marjorie C. Decker
_________________
To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
Court assembled:
The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:
An Act relative to videotaping, audiotaping and photographing persons receiving medical
treatment.
_______________
PETITION OF:
NAME:DISTRICT/ADDRESS :DATE ADDED:Marjorie C. Decker25th Middlesex1/11/2023 1 of 2
HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 533 FILED ON: 1/13/2023
HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 3625
By Representative Decker of Cambridge, a petition (accompanied by bill, House, No. 3625) of
Marjorie C. Decker relative to videotaping, audiotaping and photographing persons receiving
medical treatment. Public Health.
[SIMILAR MATTER FILED IN PREVIOUS SESSION
SEE HOUSE, NO. 2260 OF 2021-2022.]
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
_______________
In the One Hundred and Ninety-Third General Court
(2023-2024)
_______________
An Act relative to videotaping, audiotaping and photographing persons receiving medical
treatment.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority
of the same, as follows:
1 SECTION 1. Section 70E of chapter 111 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2020
2Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after the ninth paragraph the following
3paragraph:-
4 No patient shall be the subject of a recording, except for purposes of providing medical
5treatment, unless the patient, an authorized representative of a patient who is an incapacitated
6person or a parent or guardian of a patient who is a minor, consents to the recording; provided,
7however, that such consent may be revoked at any time prior to recording. No person who
8produces a recording of a patient who died while receiving treatment or any person who acquires
9the recording thereafter shall expose the recording to the public without first notifying and 2 of 2
10receiving consent from the patient’s next of kin. For purposes of this paragraph, “authorized
11representative”, shall mean: (i) an agent to whom authority to make health care decisions on
12behalf of a person is delegated under a health care proxy in accordance with the requirements of
13chapter 201D; or (ii) a guardian appointed pursuant to part 3 of article V of the Massachusetts
14Uniform Probate Code to act on behalf of a person who is incapacitated; provided, however, a
15guardian appointed pursuant to said part 3 of said article V shall not be considered an authorized
16representative if an agent has been granted authority to make health care decisions on behalf of
17the incapacitated person under a valid health care proxy. For purposes of this paragraph,
18“incapacitated person” shall mean an adult who has a clinically diagnosed condition that results
19in an inability to receive and evaluate information or make or communicate decisions to such an
20extent that the individual lacks the ability to meet essential requirements for physical health,
21safety or self-care, even with appropriate technological assistance. For purposes of this
22paragraph, “recording” shall mean a videotape, audiotape, photograph, image, film or other
23digital recording made by a video recorder, audio recorder, camera, computer, telephone or any
24other device capable of electronic data storage.