Section 97.4 - [Effective 1/1/2025] When and How to Report a Condition or Isolate(a) Humans. (1) The following notifiable conditions are public health emergencies and suspect cases must be reported immediately by telephone to the local health authority or the appropriate Department of State Health Services regional epidemiology office: (F) meningococcal infection, invasive;(I) poliomyelitis, acute paralytic;(N) vancomycin-intermediate Staphylococcus aureus (VISA);(O) vancomycin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (VRSA);(P) viral hemorrhagic fever;(R) any outbreak, exotic disease, or unusual group expression of disease that may be of public health concern.(2) The following notifiable conditions must be reported by electronic data transmission or telephone within one working day of identification as a suspected case:(C) carbapenem resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE);(E) hepatitis B, perinatal infection;(F) influenza-associated pediatric mortality;(I) poliovirus infection, non-paralytic;(K) rubella (including congenital);(L) syphilis infection in pregnant females;(M) tuberculosis (Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex); and(N)Vibrio infection (including cholera).(3) AIDS, chancroid, Chlamydia trachomatis infection, gonorrhea, HIV infection, and syphilis must be reported in accordance with Subchapter F of this chapter (relating to Sexually Transmitted Diseases Including Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) and Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)).(4) Tuberculosis antibiotic susceptibility results must be reported by laboratories no later than one week after they first become available.(5) For all other notifiable conditions not listed in paragraphs (1) - (4) of this subsection, reports of disease must be made no later than one week after a case or suspected case is identified.(A) The preferred option for reporting is electronic data transmission, but reports may be made by telephone or fax. Any electronic data transmission of the report must provide protection against unauthorized disclosure and utilize a format prescribed by the receiving agency.(B) A health information exchange (HIE) organization as defined by Texas Health and Safety Code § 182.151, may transmit reports on behalf of providers required to report in §97.2(a) - (d) of this chapter Chapter 182, Subchapter D, Health Information Exchanges, and all other state and federal law as follows. (i) The receiving agency has published message standards.(ii) A method of secure transmission has been established between the HIE and the receiving agency, and transmissions have been tested with the receiving agency and established as meeting the data exchange standards and conveying information accurately.(iii) Reporting by the HIE has been requested and authorized by the appropriate health care provider, practitioner, physician, facility, clinical laboratory, or other person required to report health-related information.(iv) HIE reports may be made in addition to but do not replace reports listed in paragraphs (1) - (2) of this subsection.(6) All diseases requiring submission of cultures in § 97.3(a)(4) of this chapter (relating to What Condition to Report and What Isolates to Report or Submit) must be submitted as they become available.(b) Animals. Reportable conditions affecting animals must be reported within one working day following the diagnosis.25 Tex. Admin. Code § 97.4
The provisions of this §97.4 adopted to be effective March 16, 1994, 19 TexReg 1453; amended to be effective July 26, 1996, 21 TexReg 6622; amended to be effective March 5, 1998, 23 TexReg 1954; amended to be effective January 1, 1999, 23 TexReg 12663; amended to be effective December 20, 2000, 25 TexReg 12426; amended to be effective August 5, 2001, 26 TexReg 5658; amended to be effective December 12, 2002, 27 TexReg 11547; amended to be effective June 5, 2007, 32 TexReg 2997; amended to be effective December 20, 2012, 37 TexReg 9777; amended to be effective April 20, 2014, 39 TexReg 2853; Amended by Texas Register, Volume 41, Number 13, March 25, 2016, TexReg 2317, eff. 4/3/2016; Amended by Texas Register, Volume 42, Number 12, March 24, 2017, TexReg 1452, eff. 4/2/2017; Amended by Texas Register, Volume 46, Number 01, January 1, 2021, TexReg 0162, eff. 1/5/2021; Amended by Texas Register, Volume 49, Number 46, November 15, 2024, TexReg 9226, eff. 1/1/2025