Cal. HSC § 1280.16
This is the official text of Cal. HSC § 1280.16, part of California’s Health and Safety Code — covers public health, hospitals, controlled substances, and environmental health standards.
Not legal advice. This page reproduces the official text of a government statute for reference only. Laws change, and how a statute applies depends on your specific facts. For advice about your situation, consult a licensed attorney in your state.
Official statutory text
For purposes of Sections 1280.17, 1280.18, 1280.19, and 1280.20, the following definitions apply:
(a) “Department” means the State Department of Public Health.
(b) “Director” means the State Public Health Officer.
(c) “Medical information” means the term as defined in Section 56.05 of the Civil Code.
(d) “Provider of health care” means the term as defined in Sections 56.05 and 56.06 of the Civil Code.
(e) “Unauthorized access” means the inappropriate review or viewing of patient medical information without a direct need for diagnosis, treatment, or other lawful use as permitted by the Confidentiality of Medical Information Act (Part 2.6 (commencing with Section 56) of Division 1 of the Civil Code) or by other statutes or regulations governing the lawful access, use, or disclosure of medical information.
(a) “Department” means the State Department of Public Health.
(b) “Director” means the State Public Health Officer.
(c) “Medical information” means the term as defined in Section 56.05 of the Civil Code.
(d) “Provider of health care” means the term as defined in Sections 56.05 and 56.06 of the Civil Code.
(e) “Unauthorized access” means the inappropriate review or viewing of patient medical information without a direct need for diagnosis, treatment, or other lawful use as permitted by the Confidentiality of Medical Information Act (Part 2.6 (commencing with Section 56) of Division 1 of the Civil Code) or by other statutes or regulations governing the lawful access, use, or disclosure of medical information.
Status: in_force · Read it on the official government site
Need a lawyer in California?
Find a California lawyer
About this page: Statute text is reproduced from official government publishers via the
Open US Law dataset
(Vaquill AI, snapshot v2026.08, CC BY 4.0). Primary legislative text like this is public domain under the government-edicts doctrine
(Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 2020). We link every section back to its official source so you can verify it independently.