About Mandatory Disease Reporting in California

Why report? 
Because it's essential for disease control and public safety. Failure to timely report has contributed to preventable secondary transmission and disease outbreaks.
Mandated reporters "extend the eyes and ears" of health officers (HOs) -- a key role to ensure the ongoing disease surveillance and response that is crucial to protect public health and safety within and across local health department (LHD) jurisdictions, our state, nation, and beyond. In California, a legally-appointed local HO (LHO) serves each of the state's 61 LHDs, including all 58 counties plus three cities (Berkeley, Pasadena and Long Beach). Each LHO reports diseases to the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) state HO. Primary objectives of disease surveillance are:

• to raise alerts to the presence of dangerous diseases or conditions;
• to determine the extent of morbidity within the community;
• to evaluate risk of transmission;
• to intervene rapidly when appropriate;
• to protect the health of patients and the public.

Why else report?
Because it's the law. Penalties for not reporting can be severe.
For example: Per state law, Medical Board of California may discipline a licensee's failure to report as unprofessional conduct, with possible misdemeanor criminal charges incurring fine (up to $1,200) or imprisonment (60 to 180 days) or both fine and imprisonment    (Business and Professions Code, Medical Practice Act -- BPC Sections 2234, 2314, 2315 ).

Who must report?
State law (California Code of Regulations Title 17 -- 17CCR§§2500, 2504, 2505, 2508) details persons who must report a human or animal with a case or suspected case of a dangerous disease or condition. Persons mandated to report include laboratories, health care providers, public health professionals, officials of most types of schools, and certain other persons. "Health care provider" means a physician and surgeon, veterinarian, podiatrist, nurse practitioner, physician assistant, registered nurse, nurse midwife, school nurse, infection control practitioner, medical examiner, coroner, or dentist.

Who is responsible to report in multi-provider settings?
 Per 17CCR§2500(c): "The administrator of each health facility, clinic or other setting where more than one health care provider may know of a case, a suspected case or an outbreak of disease within the facility shall establish and be responsible for administrative procedures to assure that reports are made to the local health officer."

Where and how to report:
Reports must be submitted to the local health department (LHD) of the patient's jurisdiction of residence. All southern California counties plus cities of Pasadena and Long Beach operate their own LHDs. Thus LA County (LAC) DPH accepts case reports only on LA County residents but not Long Beach or Pasadena residents.

• To file a report for residents of Pasadena or Long Beach or other non-LAC jurisdictions, see the all-LHDs contact information list maintained by the state public health department (CDPH) at the following link: LHD Contact Information for Health Care Providers/Labs to Report Communicable Diseases (3/2/20, CDPH)



• To file a report for an LA County resident (but not Pasadena or Long Beach), use the link below for forms and information:     Health Professional & Laboratory Mandatory Reporting Overview Grid (above)

What to Report:
Currently about 85 diseases or conditions are reportable in California. Note that the state Department of Public Health (CDPH) maintains and periodically revises the two separate state lists used by all LHDs -- 17CCR§2505 for Laboratories and 17CCR§2500(j) for other mandated reporters -- but note also that each LHD might list additional diseases not on the state's lists that they need to track locally and which might vary by local jurisdiction.
LA County's lists are at the following links and in the Mandatory Reporting Overview Grid (above): 

• Mandatory Reportable Diseases & Conditions List
  
• Mandatory Laboratory Reporting List
  


• Animal Bites to Humans.
  All animal bites to humans (except from rodents and rabbits) are reportable immediately and must contain information on the animal’s location, as it is crucial for follow-up decision-making on animal rabies quarantine and human patient treatment.



• Animal With a Disease.

◦ Priority List of Reportable Animal Diseases (LAC VetPH 2016; CDFA 1/2015-.pdf)
◦ Animal Disease and Bite Reporting Laws (LAC VetPH 12/2014)


• Disorders Characterized by Lapses of Consciousness:
       The HSC §103900 reporting law is specific to physicians and surgeons, and intends "...the definition of what constitutes a disorder characterized by lapses of consciousness as well as definitions of functional severity to guide reporting so that diagnosed cases reported pursuant to this section are only those where there is reason to believe that the patients’ conditions are likely to impair their ability to operate a motor vehicle."
       In 17CCR, see Definitions §2800 - §2808 and Reporting Requirements §2810 and Exceptions §2812. 
  The physician is to report patients 14 years and older (name, date of birth, address, diagnosis) to the LHO.
  The LHO then is to report (patient name, age and address) to the California DMV.
  If DMV subsequently needs any medical information on the patient, then DMV will directly notify the patient to contact and authorize her/his current physician to submit directly to DMV; this DMV request only will occur for drivers license holders or applicants, and also might not involve the same physician who filed the LHO report.  
  [NOTE - see also:
  ◦ Medical Board Newsletter S'2015: Reporting Lapses of Consciousness -- What is Your Legal Responsibility?
  ◦ DMV: Driver Safety Information Medical Conditions and Traffic Safety
  ◦ NHTSA: Driver Fitness Medical Guidelines, Sept. 2009
  ◦ Perspectives on Patient Rights: Driver's License Suspensions Due to  Physical or Mental Conditions



• Pesticide-Related Illnesses (Health and Safety Code §105200) [NOTE - see also
  ◦ CA EPA OEHHA Pesticide Illness Information
  ◦ CDPH Occupational Health Branch (OHB) webpage & reporting forms 

Other Reporting Resources

VAERS -- Vaccine Adverse Events Reporting System (not reported to LAC DPH):        
Federal law requires health professionals to report specific adverse events that occur after the administration of routinely recommended vaccines to the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

Meaningful Use Coordinator:  
Technical assistance and information to help healthcare  providers successfully navigate required electronic reporting.

More information: (NOTE: archival -- content and forms may be outdated.)

• An Explanation of Communicable Disease Reporting
• Responding to Urgent Case Reports: Testing the L.A. County Disease Reporting System (2006 Special Study)
• The Public's Health, Special Reporting Issue (Jan 2006)
• LAC PH B-82 Handbook - Admissions and Infection Control in Hospitals and Healthcare Organizations

To Access the Law Further:

California Medical Practice Act:
   Business and Professions Code - BPC. Division 2. HEALING ARTS.
      CHAPTER 5. Medicine [2000 - 2521]
          Article 12. Enforcement [2220 - 2319]