Delaware law lets pregnant patients refuse infection testing and treatment

Health-care providers must offer infection testing during pregnancy, and patients can refuse testing or recommended treatment. These rules cover all providers caring for pregnant patients. Testing includes sexually transmitted infections, hepatitis, and HIV. Providers must record refusals in the patient’s medical record. Providers must counsel patients who refuse testing about the risks of missed or untreated infections during pregnancy and record that counseling. Testing follows American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists guidance, starting as early as possible when prenatal care begins and continuing at its recommended times.

The sexually transmitted disease sections do not authorize forced examinations, treatment, isolation, or emergency detention. These sections concern people known or suspected to have a sexually transmitted disease. This statement concerns only the sexually transmitted disease sections, not powers that might exist under other laws.

Health professionals, facility administrators, and laboratories must report designated sexually transmitted infections and diseases to the Division of Public Health. Reporting covers professionals who diagnose, suspect, or treat cases, administrators of health or Department of Correction facilities with cases, and laboratories with findings suggesting infection. These sections set no one-working-day reporting deadline. The Department of Health and Social Services must identify which infections and diseases require reporting and set rules for investigating and controlling their spread. Those rules must fit Delaware’s other procedures for diseases that can spread between people and the infection involved. The public health director or a designated employee must act when notified of a case or suspected case that requires reporting.

Division of Public Health investigators have no special permission under this law to draw blood without the otherwise required license. This provision concerns Division of Public Health investigators collecting blood for sexually transmitted disease tests. This statement concerns the special permission for disease investigators, not all legal authority to draw blood.