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HomeHealth and Safety CodeDiv. 107Pt. 5Ch. 1§ 128738 Patient Data Element Adjustments

§ 128738 Patient Data Element Adjustments

Health and Safety Code·California
AI Summary·Official Text·Key Terms·Related Statutes·References
AI SummaryVerified

§ 128738 Patient Data Element Adjustments

Key Takeaways

  • •The government can add or remove things they track about patients in hospitals and clinics, but they have to follow rules.
  • •Before adding or removing anything, they must think about: using small samples, if it's easy to collect, if it's worth the cost, and if they can share data instead of adding new things.
  • •They can't add more than 15 new things to track over 5 years, unless it's already required by a big health law (HIPAA).
  • •They must try to keep costs low and avoid making too much extra work for hospitals and clinics.

Example

A hospital wants to start tracking if patients have pets at home because they think it might help with recovery.

The government would first check if they can use a small group of patients to test this, if it's easy for the hospital to collect this info, if it's worth the money, and if they can just share this info instead of making everyone track it. If they decide to add it, it counts toward their 15 new things limit for 5 years.

AI-generated — May contain errors. Not legal advice. Always verify source.

Official Source
View on CA.gov

§ 128738 Patient Data Element Adjustments

(a) The department shall allow and provide for, in accordance with appropriate regulations, additions or deletions to the patient level data elements listed in subdivision (g) of Section 128735, Section 128736, and Section 128737, to meet the purposes of this chapter. (b) Prior to any additions or deletions, all of the following shall be considered: (1) Utilization of sampling to the maximum extent possible. (2) Feasibility of collecting data elements. (3) Costs and benefits of collection and submission of data. (4) Exchange of data elements as opposed to addition of data elements. (c) The department shall add no more than a net of 15 elements to each data set over any five-year period. Elements contained in the uniform claims transaction set or uniform billing form required by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (42 U.S.C. Sec. 300gg) shall be exempt from the 15-element limit. (d) The department, in order to minimize costs and administrative burdens, shall consider the total number of data elements required from hospitals and freestanding ambulatory surgery clinics, and optimize the use of common data elements. (Amended by Stats. 2021, Ch. 143, Sec. 203. (AB 133) Effective July 27, 2021.)

Last verified: January 23, 2026

Key Terms

insurancehealthnetbenefitsclaimhospitalregulationport

Related Statutes

  • § 1179.81 Children’S Hospital Funding Act
  • § 128735 Health Facility Financial Reports
  • § 128760 Health Facility Accounting Systems
  • § 128765 Hospital Financial Reports Public Access
  • § 128775 Health Facility Determination Review

References

  • Official text at leginfo.legislature.ca.gov
  • California Legislature. Health and Safety Code. Section 128738.
View Official Source