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California Law (Last Updated: March 4, 2014) |
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Welfare and Institutions Code - WIC |
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Division 2.5. YOUTHS |
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Chapter 1. The Youth Authority |
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ARTICLE 4. Powers and Duties of Youth Authority |
Section 1768.9.
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(a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a person under the jurisdiction or control of the Department of the Youth Authority is obligated to submit to a test for the probable causative agent of AIDS upon a determination of the chief medical officer of the facility that clinical symptoms of AIDS or AIDS-related complex, as recognized by the Centers for Disease Control, is present in the person. In the event that the subject of the test refuses to submit to such a test, the department may seek a court order to require him or her to submit to the test.
(b) Prior to ordering a test pursuant to subdivision (a), the chief medical officer shall ensure that the subject of the test receives pretest counseling. The counseling shall include:
(1) Testing procedures, effectiveness, reliability, and confidentiality.
(2) The mode of transmission of HIV.
(3) Symptoms of AIDS and AIDS-related complex.
(4) Precautions to avoid exposure and transmission.
The chief medical officer shall also encourage the subject of the test to undergo voluntary testing prior to ordering a test. The chief medical officer shall also ensure that the subject of the test receives posttest counseling.
(c) The following procedures shall apply to testing conducted under this section:
(1) The withdrawal of blood shall be performed in a medically approved manner. Only a physician, registered nurse, licensed vocational nurse, licensed medical technician, or licensed phlebotomist may withdraw blood specimens for the purposes of this section.
(2) The chief medical officer shall order that the blood specimens be transmitted to a licensed medical laboratory which has been approved by the State Department of Health Services for the conducting of AIDS testing, and that tests, including all readily available confirmatory tests, be conducted thereon for medically accepted indications of exposure to or infection with HIV.
(3) The subject of the test shall be notified face-to-face as to the results of the test.
(d) All counseling and notification of test results shall be conducted by one of the following:
(1) A physician and surgeon who has received training in the subjects described in subdivision (b).
(2) A registered nurse who has received training in the subjects described in subdivision (b).
(3) A psychologist who has received training in the subjects described in subdivision (b) and who is under the purview of either a registered nurse or physician and surgeon who has received training in the subjects described in subdivision (b).
(4) A licensed social worker who has received training in the subjects described in subdivision (b) and who is under the purview of either a registered nurse or physician and surgeon who has received training in the subjects described in subdivision (b).
(5) A trained volunteer counselor who has received training in the subjects described in subdivision (b) and who is under the supervision of either a registered nurse or physician and surgeon who has received training in the subjects described in subdivision (b).
(e) The Department of the Youth Authority shall provide medical services appropriate for the diagnosis and treatment of those infected with HIV.
(f) The Department of the Youth Authority may operate separate housing facilities for wards and inmates who have tested positive for HIV infection and who continue to engage in activities which transmit HIV. These facilities shall be comparable to those of other wards and inmates with access to recreational and educational facilities, commensurate with the facilities available in the institution.
(g) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the chief medical officer of a facility of the Department of the Youth Authority may do all of the following:
(1) Disclose results of a test for the probable causative agent of AIDS to the superintendent or administrator of the facility where the test subject is confined.
(2) When test results are positive, inform the test subject's known sexual partners or needle contacts in a Department of the Youth Authority facility of the positive results, provided that the test subject's identity is kept confidential. All wards and inmates who are provided with this information shall be provided with the counseling described in subdivision (b).
(3) Include the test results in the subject's confidential medical record which is to be maintained separate from other case files and records.
(h) Actions taken pursuant to this section shall not be subject to subdivisions (a) to (c), inclusive, of Section 120980 of the Health and Safety Code. In addition, the requirements of subdivision (a) of Section 120990 of the Health and Safety Code shall not apply to testing performed pursuant to this section.