Idaho Medical Lien Statute: Important Changes

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By Kim Stanger

Since 2020, healthcare providers have struggled to reconcile Idaho’s medical lien law with the Idaho Patient Act (IPACT). The lien statute allows healthcare providers who render treatment to a person injured by the acts of a third party to file a lien against the liable third party to recover their fees; to be effective, the lien had to be filed within 90 days of the last date of services.1 But filing a medical lien constituted an “extraordinary collection action” under IPACT, and IPACT generally prohibited taking such actions until after the 90-day period for filing the medical lien expired.2 Net result: providers had to choose between the lien or potential IPACT penalties.

Effective March 28, 2024, the Idaho legislature resolved the dilemma by permitting compliant medical liens so long as they are filed under new time limits in the lien statute. Read more

Idaho’s New Parental Access Law v. HIPAA

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By Kim Stanger

As discussed in our prior health law update, New Limits on Minor Consents in Idaho, effective July 1, 2024, parents generally will have the right to access the medical records of their unemancipated minor children subject to very limited exceptions.  A parent who is denied access may sue the provider for damages and fees.1 Read more

New Limits on Minor Consents in Idaho

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By Kim Stanger

Note: This health law update originally was published on April 9, 2024. It was updated April 26, 2024, to reflect additional information.

Effective July 1, 2024, Idaho healthcare providers must obtain parental consent to treat unemancipated minors or face civil liability except in emergency cases. In addition, parents will have a right to access the medical records of their minor children subject to very limited exceptions. This is a significant change in the current law and will require healthcare providers to adjust their current policies and practices. The statute must be read and applied in conjunction with Idaho’s general consent statutes, I.C. § 39-4501 et seq. Read more

24-Hour Mental Holds In Idaho: New Standards, New Problems

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By Kim Stanger

Since early 2022, the Idaho legislature has modified the standards for a patient’s capacity to consent to healthcare and 24-hour protective holds. This health law update summarizes the current rules for capacity and consent; the amended standards for 24-hour mental holds; and the net effect the changes may have on patients, providers, and hospitals. For information concerning protective holds for minors under I.C. § 16-2411 or 72-hour holds for voluntary inpatients under I.C. § 66-320, see our article at https://www.hollandhart.com/mental-holds-in-idaho. Read more

No More EMTALA Exception to Idaho’s Total Abortion Ban

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By Kim Stanger

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has ended the EMTALA exception to Idaho’s total abortion ban, I.C. 18-622.

In 2022, the US Department of Justice (DOJ) sued the state of Idaho, claiming that EMTALA preempted the total abortion ban in emergency cases. The federal district court of Idaho entered a preliminary injunction staying Idaho’s enforcement of its total abortion ban in EMTALA cases pending final resolution of the case.  (See our August 26, 2022, Health Law Update.) However, on September 28, 2023, the Ninth Circuit overruled the district court, holding that an intervening decision by the Idaho Supreme Court and Idaho’s amendment to the total abortion ban in 2023 mitigated, to a large extent, the concerns raised by the district court. Accordingly, the Ninth Circuit stayed the district court’s injunction, thereby ending the EMTALA exception to the total abortion ban pending a final decision in the district court case. A copy of the Ninth Circuit decision may be accessed here.  Read more