Arizona’s House of Representatives on Feb. 8 approved a bill that guarantees parents the right to access online medical records for their minor children.
The bill’s sponsor, Republican Rep. Julie Willoughby, hailed the affirmative vote as a win for parents concerned about the health and well-being of their children.
“As health-care delivery evolves, patients have increasingly varied avenues to access and communicate with health-care providers,” Ms. Willoughby said in a statement.
“Yet, I’ve heard from parents who have been denied the ability to access their child’s medical records through an online patient portal.
“These portals are essential for parents to manage the care of their children, enabling them to contact pediatricians and specialists, schedule appointments, and refill prescriptions.”
Ms. Willoughby said Arizona’s parental bill of rights safeguards the ability of parents to make health-care decisions for their minor children under the age of 18.
HB 2183, with bipartisan support, builds upon this protection by granting parents equal access to healthcare-delivery platforms that include online medical portals, she said.
The bill requires a health-care provider or physician to give a parent “equivalent access” to electronic health-care portals or delivery platforms until the child reaches adulthood.
It would grant parents “the right to request, access, and review all written and electronic medical records of the minor child unless otherwise prohibited by law or unless the parent is the subject of an investigation of a crime committed against the minor child and a law enforcement official requests that the information not be released.”
Gender Transition Barred for Minors
With regard to minors and gender transition treatments, former Republican Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey on March 30, 2022, signed into law SB 1138, which prohibits gender transition procedures for any child under 18.The law applies to physicians and health-care providers alike.
“The irreversible nature of these procedures underscores why such a decision should be made as an adult, not as a child, and further supports the importance of this legislation,” Mr. Ducey wrote in a letter to former Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs, a Democrat who was elected governor in 2022.
“SB1138 delays any irreversible gender reassignment surgery until the age of 18. The reason is simple and common sense—this is a decision that will dramatically affect the rest of an individual’s life, including the ability of the individual to become a biological parent later in life.”
Ms. Willoughby’s legislation passed the state House in a 32-25 vote after a third reading and now advances to the state Senate for a vote.
