Section 216-RICR-30-05-1.7 - Instructions for Laboratories1.7.1General InstructionsA. Whenever a Rhode Island licensed clinical laboratory performs tests or has the sample(s) tested out of State for those diseases cited in § 1.5.3 of this Part, the laboratory shall submit to RIDOH all positive findings.B. Negative laboratory results for those diseases cited in § 1.5.3 of this Part, must be reported for public health surveillance and investigation purposes at the discretion of RIDOH.C. The report shall consist of a copy of the laboratory findings submitted to the physician or other licensed health care provider who ordered the test. This report shall indicate the name of the case, address of the case, gender, date of birth, telephone number, race, ethnicity, and name of attending physician.D. All genotyping, molecular detection, and phylogenetic testing results on reportable conditions must be reported to RIDOH.1.7.2Reporting of Agents of BioterrorismA. An immediate report must be made to RIDOH by telephone when an ordering provider requests a test for a potential agent of bioterrorism. After normal business hours, the RIDOH's after-hours on-call physician must be informed. 1. Potential agents of bioterrorism are: a. Anthrax (Bacillus anthracis)b. Botulism (Clostridium botulinum)c. Brucellosis (Brucella species)d. Clostridium perfringens epsilon toxine. Glanders (Burkholderia mallei)f. Melioidosis (Burkholderia pseudomallei)g. Plague (Yersinia pestis)h. Q-fever (Coxiella burnetii)k. Staphylococcal enterotoxin B poisoningl. Tularemia (Francisella tularensis)m. Viral hemorrhagic fevers (Ebola, Lassa, Marburg, etc.)2. Clinical laboratories that isolate a potential agent of bioterrorism from a clinical specimen shall perform testing in accordance with the most current American Society of Microbiology (ASM) Sentinel Laboratory protocol as incorporated in §§ 1.2(B) and (C) of this Part, and, if unable to definitively rule out the agent, must submit the isolate to the Rhode Island State Health Laboratories for confirmation or further testing.1.7.3Reporting of Acid Fast Bacilli (AFB) and Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB)A. Clinical laboratories receiving clinical specimens for the purposes of performing testing for the presence of Acid Fast Bacilli (AFB) or Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) testing must submit a specimen to the Rhode Island State Health Laboratories for analysis. 1. This requirement is waived for a Rhode Island licensed hospital laboratory, provided a written memorandum of agreement is in place between the State Health Laboratories and the hospital laboratory.2. In order to obtain a memorandum of agreement, a hospital laboratory's mycobacteriology testing methodology and practice must be consistent with national consensus standards as incorporated in § 1.2(D) of this Part.a. Licensed hospital laboratories that have a written memorandum of agreement with the State Health Laboratories and are performing MTB testing by any methodology shall report all positive results to RIDOH.b. Positive culture results on an individual must be accompanied by all prior AFB smear results performed by the respective laboratory, and associated with the current episode of illness, whether positive or negative.B. As part of LTBI surveillance, Interferon Gamma Release Assay (IGRA) positive results must be reported.1.7.4Reporting Perinatal Exposure to HIVPersons and entities described in § 1.4.1 of this Part must report all positive and negative HIV virologic laboratory tests on infants, zero (0) through twelve (12) months of age.
216 R.I. Code R. 216-RICR-30-05-1.7
Amended effective 1/3/2022
Amended effective 1/15/2022