The Utah Office of Licensing (OL), under the Division of Licensing and Background Checks (DLBC) is sharing important information regarding recent statute updates from the 2026 General Legislative Session that may impact you as a provider.
Type of facility or program:
Any provider that handles children’s medical records (Hospitals, psychiatric hospitals, ICF-IIDs, Nursing Care Facilities, Personal Care Agencies, Birthing Centers, ESRDs, ASCs, HH, Hospice and abortion clinics)
Overview of Statute Update and Potential Impact
- Effective Monday, May 20, 2026, OL will begin enforcing newly enacted statutory requirements that impact specific licensed facilities or programs within the state. The changes follow the official effective date of the relevant statute, which occurred on Wednesday, May 6, 2026.
- We strongly encourage you to carefully review the statutory language H.B. 259 Parental Access to Children’s Medical Record Amendments and proactively assess your facility’s or program’s current practices in relation to these new requirements, this bill:
- defines terms;
- specifies that a parent has the right to access their child’s medical record;
- requires a health care facility to ensure that a child’s parent has access to the child’s electronic health record unless certain circumstances are met;
- requires an electronic medical record system vendor to ensure a health care facility can provide access to parents;
- authorizes the attorney general’s office to bring enforcement actions; and
- requires a health care facility to provide medical records free of charge under certain circumstances.
- Note: Some changes in this bill will not take effect until December 31, 2027.
Next Steps for OL
- Recognizing that the full implementation of these new requirements will require updates to existing administrative rules and internal operational procedures within OL, a phased approach to assess compliance will be adopted during this interim period.
- Until the new rules and new procedural guidelines are developed, OL will evaluate facility or program compliance with these recent statutory additions or changes through our current OL inspections and statute language.
Questions or Guidance
Please do not hesitate to contact your assigned licensor directly if you have questions, require clarification on specific aspects of the requirements, or need guidance on how these changes may affect your facility’s or program’s operations.
Understanding these changes is crucial for maintaining compliance and ensuring the health and safety of clients. OL is committed to providing the necessary support and resources to facilitate a smooth and effective transition to these new requirements.