This section describes the conditions about which Washington's laboratories must notify public health authorities of on a statewide basis. The board finds that the conditions in Table Lab-1 of this section are notifiable for the prevention and control of communicable and noninfectious diseases and conditions in Washington. The board also finds that submission of specimens for many of these conditions will further prevent the spread of disease.

(1) Laboratory directors shall notify public health authorities of positive preliminary test results and positive final test results of the conditions identified in Table Lab-1 of this section as individual case reports and provide specimen submissions following the requirements in WAC 246-101-205, 246-101-210, 246-101-215, 246-101-220, 246-101-225, and 246-101-230.

(2) Local health officers may require additional conditions to be notifiable within the local health officer's jurisdiction.

Table Lab-1 (Conditions Notifiable by Laboratory Directors)

(3) The local health department may request laboratory reporting of additional test results pertinent to an investigation of a notifiable condition (e.g., hepatocellular enzyme levels for hepatitis or negative stool test results on salmonellosis rescreening).

(4) Laboratory directors may notify the local health department, the department, or both of other laboratory results.

(1) For the purposes of Table Lab-1:

(a) "At least annually" means deidentified negative screening results may be submitted in a single report no less than once per year, but may be submitted more frequently as a single report or as individual screening results.

(b) "Deidentified negative screening result" means an initial test result that indicates the absence of disease, and that has personally identifiable information removed from it using the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 Safe Harbor method defined in 45 C.F.R. 164.514. A deidentified negative screening result does not include a negative test result associated with a previous positive test result, such as a negative nucleic acid or viral load test that is performed after a positive antibody or antigen test.

(c) "LHJ" means where the patient resides, or, in the event that patient residence cannot be determined, the local health jurisdiction in which the ordering health care provider practices, or the local health jurisdiction in which the laboratory operates.

(d) "Within two business days" means specimens must be in transit to the Washington state public health laboratories within two business days of:

(i) Completing a test and the specimen being ready for packaging; or

(ii) Receiving a request from a local health jurisdiction or the department, provided the specimen is still available at the time of the request.

(2) This chapter does not require a laboratory to:

(a) Test for agents (conditions) or speciate if the laboratory does not perform the test as part of its normal work. A laboratory director shall only report a condition if it is identified as part of their normal testing protocols; or

(b) Retain specimens indefinitely in anticipation of a request from a local health jurisdiction or the department.

(3) The agents (conditions) in Table Lab-1 are notifiable by a laboratory director as indicated in Table Lab-1 and this chapter.

Table Lab-1 (Conditions Notifiable by Laboratory Directors)