ACCESS TO RECORDS AND CONFIDENTIALITY.

(a) The state long-term care ombudsman and representatives shall have access to patient care records of residents as provided by commission rules. Except as provided by Subsection (b), all records and information created or obtained by the state long-term care ombudsman or a representative remain confidential.

(a-1) The state long-term care ombudsman and representatives shall have access to patient care records of a resident if:

(1) the resident or the resident's legal representative consents to the access;

(2) the resident is unable to consent to the access and the resident has no legal representative; or

(3) access to the records is necessary to investigate a complaint and:

(A) a legal representative of the resident refuses to consent to the access;

(B) the state long-term care ombudsman or representative has reasonable cause to believe that the legal representative of the resident is not acting in the best interests of the resident; and

(C) the state long-term care ombudsman approves the access.

(b) The office shall ensure that the identity of a complainant or any resident may be disclosed only with the consent of the person or the person's legal representative or on court order.

(c) Files, records, and other information maintained as part of the ombudsman program may be disclosed only at the discretion of the state long-term care ombudsman.