[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 42, Volume 1, Parts 1 to 399]
[Revised as of October 1, 2000]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 42CFR2.66]

[Page 25]
 
                         TITLE 42--PUBLIC HEALTH
 
                    CHAPTER I--PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICE,
                        DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND
                             HUMAN SERVICES
 
PART 2--CONFIDENTIALITY OF ALCOHOL AND DRUG ABUSE PATIENT RECORDS--Table of Contents
 
         Subpart E--Court Orders Authorizing Disclosure and Use
 
Sec. 2.66  Procedures and criteria for orders authorizing disclosure and use of records to investigate or prosecute a program or the person holding the records.

    (a) Application. (1) An order authorizing the disclosure or use of 
patient records to criminally or administratively investigate or 
prosecute a program or the person holding the records (or employees or 
agents of that program or person) may be applied for by any 
administrative, regulatory, supervisory, investigative, law enforcement, 
or prosecutorial agency having jurisdiction over the program's or 
person's activities.
    (2) The application may be filed separately or as part of a pending 
civil or criminal action against a program or the person holding the 
records (or agents or employees of the program or person) in which it 
appears that the patient records are needed to provide material 
evidence. The application must use a fictitious name, such as John Doe, 
to refer to any patient and may not contain or otherwise disclose any 
patient identifying information unless the court has ordered the record 
of the proceeding sealed from public scrutiny or the patient has given a 
written consent (meeting the requirements of Sec. 2.31 of these 
regulations) to that disclosure.
    (b) Notice not required. An application under this section may, in 
the discretion of the court, be granted without notice. Although no 
express notice is required to the program, to the person holding the 
records, or to any patient whose records are to be disclosed, upon 
implementation of an order so granted any of the above persons must be 
afforded an opportunity to seek revocation or amendment of that order, 
limited to the presentation of evidence on the statutory and regulatory 
criteria for the issuance of the court order.
    (c) Requirements for order. An order under this section must be 
entered in accordance with, and comply with the requirements of, 
paragraphs (d) and (e) of Sec. 2.64 of these regulations.
    (d) Limitations on disclosure and use of patient identifying 
information: (1) An order entered under this section must require the 
deletion of patient identifying information from any documents made 
available to the public.
    (2) No information obtained under this section may be used to 
conduct any investigation or prosecution of a patient, or be used as the 
basis for an application for an order under Sec. 2.65 of these 
regulations.