A new law set to take effect on September 1 will change how Texas patients receive sensitive medical test results. The legislation, Senate Bill 922, was passed by the Texas Legislature and allows physicians up to three days to review and discuss significant test outcomes with their patients before releasing the information electronically.
The law, authored by Senator Kelly Hancock (R-North Richland Hills) and Representative Caroline Fairly (R-Amarillo), specifically applies to tests likely to reveal major diagnoses such as cancer or genetic markers. Under previous federal rules from the 21st Century Cures Act, test results were made available immediately through patient portals, often before physicians could explain them.
“When Governor Abbott signed Senate Bill 922 into law, he restored something we never thought we would need to fight for: the right for patients to receive life-changing medical results from their clinicians, and the right for physicians to deliver this information in a timely, informative, compassionate manner,” said Dallas oncologist David E. Gerber, MD. Dr. Gerber has worked for years advocating changes in how sensitive health data is shared with patients.
Pottsboro resident Cindy Lenert, who has been treated by Dr. Gerber for cancer, welcomed the change. “It’s fantastic, I love it,” she said. “It’s just going to take a lot of anxiety away from the patient.”
Before this law, patients like Ms. Lenert often received confusing or alarming results online without guidance from their doctor. Ms. Lenert recalled reading her own cancer scan report and being unable to interpret its meaning until her next appointment.
“I didn’t know what the heck I was reading, so I’m all upset, thinking, is this good? Is it bad?” she said.
Dr. Gerber explained that since spring 2021—when immediate release of records became mandatory—many patients saw their pathology reports even before their doctors did: “The pendulum just swung too fast, too far… from zero to 100,” he said.
He recounted instances where patients learned of serious diagnoses at difficult moments: “I have had patients learn that they have cancer from a smartphone notification in the middle of a business dinner, while reading a bedtime story to a 3-year-old child, and during a rush-hour commute.”
While quick access can benefit some situations according to Dr. Gerber’s testimony on behalf of the Texas Medical Association (https://www.texmed.org/), many found immediate notifications distressing when context was lacking.
“Although this bill places a brief pause on the electronic transfer of some test results to a patient, it allows for a physician to call a patient with the results at any time,” Dr. Gerber noted. “Giving the right information, rather than just the fastest information.”
Ms. Lenert described relief after hearing directly from her doctor: “He told me it was good news,” she said about her follow-up conversation regarding treatment effectiveness.
