(b) Notwithstanding any other law, the Attorney General and his or her investigative agents, and investigators and representatives of the board or the California Board of Podiatric Medicine, may inquire into any alleged violation of the Medical Practice Act or any other federal or state law, regulation, or rule relevant to the practice of medicine or podiatric medicine, whichever is applicable, and may inspect documents relevant to those investigations in accordance with the following procedures:

1. (1) Any document relevant to an investigation may be inspected, and copies may be obtained, where patient consent is given.
2. (2) Any document relevant to the business operations of a licensee, and not involving medical records attributable to identifiable patients, may be inspected and copied if relevant to an investigation of a licensee.

(c)

1. (1) Notwithstanding subdivision (b) or any other law, in any investigation that involves the death of a patient, the board may inspect and copy the medical records of the deceased patient without the authorization of the beneficiary or personal representative of the deceased patient or a court order solely for the purpose of determining the extent to which the death was the result of the physician and surgeon’s conduct in violation of the Medical Practice Act, if the board provides a written request to either the physician and surgeon or the facility where the medical records are located or the care to the deceased patient was provided, that includes a declaration that the board has been unsuccessful in locating or contacting the deceased patient’s beneficiary or personal representative after reasonable efforts. Nothing in this subdivision shall be construed to allow the board to inspect and copy the medical records of a deceased patient without a court order when the beneficiary or personal representative of the deceased patient has been located and contacted but has refused to consent to the board inspecting and copying the medical records of the deceased patient.
2. (2) The Legislature finds and declares that the authority created in the board pursuant to this section, and a physician and surgeon’s compliance with this section, are consistent with the public interest and benefit activities of the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).