(b) No person who obtains confidential HIV-related information in the course of his or her employment with the department or pursuant to a release of confidential HIV-related information may disclose or be compelled to disclose such information, except to the following:

1. (1) the protected individual or, when the protected individual lacks capacity to consent, a person authorized by law to consent to health care for the individual;
2. (2) any person to whom disclosure is authorized pursuant to a release of confidential HIV-related information in accordance with subdivision (a) of this section;
3. (3) a health care provider of the protected individual as defined in section 7.2(j) of this Part;
4. (4) Deputy Commissioner/Director of Correctional Medical Standards and employees within the Division of Health Services authorized by the Deputy Commissioner as necessary to perform their duties and to provide appropriate supervision, monitoring, administration or provision of treatment and services offered to the protected individual;
5. (5) Assistant Commissioner for Health Services and employees within the Division of Health Services as necessary on a need to know basis for providing appropriate supervision, monitoring, administration or provision of treatment and services offered to the protected individual;
6. (6) superintendent of the facility in which the protected individual is incarcerated as necessary on a need to know basis for providing appropriate supervision, monitoring, administration or provision of treatment and services offered to the protected individual, including services associated with possible parole release;
7. (7) attorneys for the department or with the Office of the Attorney General when access is reasonably necessary in the course of providing legal services and when reasonably necessary for supervision, monitoring, administration or provision of services;
8. (8) authorized employees of the facility Business Office, Deputy Superintendent for Administration, Central Office Budget and Finance, Bureau of Internal Controls, the Deputy Commissioner of Administration, and the Division of Audit and Control as necessary to ensure appropriate payment of medical services or to track expenses associated with HIV-related care;
9. (9) Assistant Commissioner for Population Management as necessary on a need to know basis for providing appropriate supervision, monitoring, administration or provision of treatment and services offered to the protected individual, including services associated with possible parole release;
10. (10) institutional parole officer from the facility medical director by use of the Health Discharge Summary Sheet;
11. (11) Parole Services Program Specialist by the Deputy Commissioner/Director of Correctional Medical Standards;
12. (12) authorized employee of the State Commission of Correction, as defined by the rules and regulations promulgated by the State Commission of Correction;
13. (13) a clinician of the Office of Mental Health upon the clinician's written request provided that the clinician is involved in the treatment of the individual, or if facility medical personnel believes the release of confidential HIV-related information to the clinician may be beneficial to the treatment of the individual;
14. (14) a medical director of a local correctional facility or the medical director of a Federal correctional facility or the medical director of the Bureau of Immigration and Naturalization Services in which the protected individual is incarcerated or is to be transferred, to the extent that such medical director is authorized to access such information with respect to a protected individual;
15. (15) a funeral director upon taking charge of the remains of a deceased person when such funeral director has access in the ordinary course of business to HIV-related information on the death certificate of the deceased individual, as authorized by Public Health Law, section 2785;
16. (16) any person not listed above, to whom disclosure is authorized pursuant to Public Health Law, section 2782.1(a) through (o) or 2785.

(e) A physician may disclose confidential HIV-related information pertaining to a protected individual to a person, known to the physician, authorized pursuant to law to consent to the health care for a protected individual when the physician reasonably believes that:

1. (1) disclosure is medically necessary in order to provide timely care and treatment for the protected individual; and

2. (2) after appropriate counseling as to the need for such disclosure, the protected individual will not inform a person authorized by law to consent to health care; provided, however, that the physician shall not make such disclosure if, in the judgment of the physician:

   1. (i) the disclosure would not be in the best interest of the protected individual; or

   2. (ii) the protected individual is authorized pursuant to law to consent to such care and treatment.

      A physician's decision to disclose pursuant to this paragraph, and the basis for that decision shall be recorded in the medical record.