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Minutes for SB83 - Committee on Public Health and Welfare
Short Title
Allowing certain exceptions to the confidentiality of state child death review board documents.
Minutes Content for Tue, Feb 2, 2021
Chairperson Hilderbrand opened the Hearing on SB83.
Jenna Moyer, Staff Revisor gave an overview of SB83. She took questions from committee members. (Attachment 1)
Melissa Johnson testified that the passage of SB83 would accomplish four goals:
- Allow more information to be provided to Kansas law enforcement agencies and District and County Attorneys in cases of a child's death caused by abuse or neglect to assist them with conducting a complete investigation and/or reviewing the evidence for prosecution;
- Allow board members who are licensed professionals to report necessary information for a disciplinary complaint required by their professional licensure;
- Allow access to the Child Death Review Case Reporting System (CRS) for record keeping purposes as long as the information is de-identified; and
- Allow access for researchers, who have been approved by the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and signed a confidentiality agreement, to use de-identified information in approved research projects. (Attachment 2) (Attachment 3)
Ed Klumpp presented proponent testimony as the provisions in SB83 allow the State Child Death Review Board to disclose information to law enforcement and prosecutors in certain situations. He suggested an amendment that would insert the following language, " or if the Board has knowledge of a law enforcement investigation involving the death of a child". (Attachment 4)
Written only proponent testimony was submitted by Phyllis Larimore, Safe Kids Kansas (Attachment 5) and Rachel Marsh, Children's Alliance of Kansas (Attachment 6).
Senator Baumgardner asked Melissa Johnson a question about the suggested amendment by Ed Klumpp and requested that the proponents and revisor work together on it.
Abby Collier stated in her neutral testimony that the National Center for Fatality Review and Prevention team meetings put together a puzzle to understand the risk factors and circumstances surrounding the death of a child in three steps. The first step is to the tell the story by reviewing records of a child's death. The second step is using the data to identity risk factors and circumstances for prevention and the final step is to catalyze prevention which is the reason for their work. The Case Reporting System contains a unique set of information that has been used throughout the US to drive prevention efforts that have improved the health and safety of many communities. (Attachment 7)
Chairperson Hilderbrand closed the hearing on SB83.
