The Vermont Statutes Online
The Statutes below include the actions of the 2025 session of the General Assembly.
NOTE: The Vermont Statutes Online is an unofficial copy of the Vermont Statutes Annotated that is provided as a convenience.
(Cite as: 12 V.S.A. § 1705)
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§ 1705. HIV-related testing information
(a) No court of this State shall issue an order requiring the disclosure of individually-identifiable
HIV-related testing or counseling information unless the court finds that the person
seeking the information has demonstrated a compelling need for it that cannot be accommodated
by other means. In assessing compelling need, the court shall weigh the need for
disclosure against the privacy interest of the test subject and the public interest
which may be disserved by disclosure which deters future testing or which may lead
to discrimination.
(b) Pleadings pertaining to disclosure of HIV-related testing and counseling information
shall substitute a pseudonym for the true name of the subject of the test. The subject’s
true name shall be communicated confidentially to the court and those parties who
have a compelling need to know the subject’s true name. All documents filed with
the court which identify the subject’s true name shall not be disclosed to any person
other than those parties who have a compelling need to know the subject’s true name
and the subject of the test. All such documents shall be sealed upon the conclusion
of proceedings under this section.
(c) Before granting any such order, the court shall provide the individual whose test
information is in question with notice and a reasonable opportunity to participate
in the proceedings if he or she is not already a party.
(d) Court proceedings as to disclosure of counseling and testing information shall be
conducted in camera unless the subject of the test agrees to a hearing in open court
or unless the court determines that a public hearing is necessary to the public interest
and the proper administration of justice.
(e) Upon issuance of an order to disclose test results, the court shall impose appropriate
safeguards against unauthorized disclosure, which shall specify the persons who may
have access to the information, the purposes for which the information shall be used,
and appropriate prohibitions on future disclosure. (Added 1987, No. 194 (Adj. Sess.), § 3.)