AB 571

This bill directs the Department of Population Health Sciences, or its successor, at the UW-Madison School of Medicine and Public Health to establish and maintain a Parkinson’s disease registry and to collect data on the incidence and prevalence of Parkinson’s disease and parkinsonisms in this state. The bill defines “parkinsonism” as a condition that is similar or related to Parkinson’s disease.

In addition, under the bill, if a health care provider treats or diagnoses a patient with Parkinson’s disease or a parkinsonism, that health care provider or the health care facility that employs or contracts with the health care provider must report information about the patient’s Parkinson’s disease or parkinsonism to the Department of Population Health Sciences for purposes of the Parkinson’s disease registry. If a patient declines to participate in the Parkinson’s disease registry, the health care provider or health care facility must report only the incident of the patient’s Parkinson’s disease or parkinsonism. Under the bill, these requirements are considered to have been met if the health care provider includes the information in the affected patient’s electronic medical record and the entity that has provides the health care provider’s electronic medical record services relays the information to the UW population health sciences department.

The bill directs the Department of Population Health Sciences to create a website for the Parkinson’s disease registry that includes annual reports on the incidence and prevalence of Parkinson’s disease in this state. The bill also authorizes UW-Madison to enter into agreements in order to furnish data from the Parkinson’s disease registry to another state’s Parkinson’s disease registry, a federal Parkinson’s disease control agency, a local health officer, or a researcher who proposes to conduct research on Parkinson’s disease, subject to certain confidentiality requirements.