§ 63-5-131 — Immunity of peer review committee from liability - Confidentiality

(a) As used in this section, "peer review committee" or "committee" means any committee, board, commission or other entity constituted by any statewide dental association or local dental society for the purpose of receiving and evaluating dental acts of other dentists or dental auxiliary personnel or their personal conduct as it relates to the performance of their professional duties. (b) Any dentist who serves on any peer review committee or on any other committee is immune from liability with respect to any action taken by the dentist in good faith and without malice as a member of such committee, board, commission or other entity. (c) Dentists, dental hygienists and registered dental assistants, members of boards of directors or trustees of any publicly supported or privately supported hospital or other such provider of health care, or any other individual appointed to any committee, as such term is described in subsection (a), are immune from liability to any patient, individual or organization for furnishing information, data, reports or records to any such committee or for damages resulting from any decision, opinions, actions and proceedings rendered, entered or acted upon by such committees undertaken or performed within the scope or functions of the duties of such committees, if made or taken in good faith and without malice and on the basis of facts reasonably known or reasonably believed to exist. (d) All information, interviews, reports, statements, memoranda or other data furnished to any such peer review committee or other entity and any findings, conclusions or recommendations resulting from the proceedings of such committee or other entity are privileged. The records and proceedings of any such committee or other entity are confidential and shall be used by such committee or other entity and the members thereof only in the exercise of the proper functions of the committee or other entity and shall not become public record nor be available for court subpoena or discovery proceedings. Nothing contained in this subsection (d) applies to records, documents or information otherwise available from original sources, such records, documents or information not to be construed as immune from discovery or use in any civil proceeding solely due to presentation to the committee.

Legislative History

Acts 1974, ch. 656, § 1; T.C.A., § 63-561; Acts 1985, ch. 71, § 7; 1990, ch. 1031, §29; 1992, ch. 859, § 2.