Minnesota Session Laws - 1987, Regular Session

  

                         Laws of Minnesota 1987 

                        CHAPTER 144-H.F.No. 1204 
           An act relating to health facilities; providing for 
          the management of county health facilities; clarifying 
          provisions relating to the St. Paul Ramsey medical 
          center; permitting the Hennepin county board to hold 
          closed meetings on certain medical center business; 
          permitting certain data to be treated as trade secret 
          information; amending Minnesota Statutes 1986, 
          sections 246A.16, subdivision 2; 246A.17, subdivision 
          2; and 383B.217, subdivision 7.  
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
    Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1986, section 246A.16, 
subdivision 2, is amended to read: 
    Subd. 2.  [BOARD ACTION.] Notwithstanding any law to the 
contrary section 471.705, the corporation and the hospital 
subsidiary corporation may meet in closed session to discuss and 
take action on specific matters involving contracts or marketing 
activity in cases where the corporation or its subsidiaries are 
in competition with health care providers that offer similar 
goods or services, and where the disclosure of information 
pertaining to such matters would cause harm to the competitive 
position of the corporation or its subsidiaries. 
    Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 1986, section 246A.17, 
subdivision 2, is amended to read: 
    Subd. 2.  [TRADE SECRET INFORMATION.] Notwithstanding any 
law to the contrary, Data concerning specific matters involving 
contracts or marketing activity in cases where the corporation 
or its subsidiaries are in competition with health care 
providers that offer similar goods or services are "trade secret 
information" for purposes of section 13.37, subdivision 2, to 
the extent disclosure of information pertaining to such matters 
would cause harm to the competitive position of the corporation 
or its subsidiaries. 
    Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 1986, section 383B.217, 
subdivision 7, is amended to read:  
    Subd. 7.  [PURCHASES AND MARKETING.] (a) Contracting and 
purchasing made on behalf of the Hennepin county medical center 
of goods, materials, supplies, equipment and contracted services 
shall comply with sections 383B.141 to 383B.151. 
    (b) Notwithstanding section 471.705, the county board on 
behalf of the medical center may meet in closed session to 
discuss and take action on specific products or services that 
are in direct competition with other providers of goods or 
services in the public or private sector, if disclosure of 
information pertaining to those matters would clearly harm the 
competitive position of the medical center. 
    (c) The medical center shall inform the county board when 
there are matters that are appropriate for discussion or action 
under paragraph (b).  The county administrator or the 
administrator's designee shall give the board an opinion on the 
propriety of discussion or action under paragraph (b) for each 
of the matters.  The county board may, by a majority vote in a 
public meeting, decide to hold a closed meeting under paragraph 
(b).  The purpose, time and place of the meeting must be 
announced at a public meeting.  A written roll of members 
present at a closed meeting must be made available to the public 
after the closed meeting.  The proceedings of a closed meeting 
must be tape recorded at the expense of the county board and be 
preserved for not less than five years after the meeting.  The 
data on the tape are nonpublic data under section 13.02, 
subdivision 9, until two years after the meeting.  A contract 
entered into by the county board at a meeting held on behalf of 
the medical center is subject to section 471.345.  All bids and 
any related materials that are considered at the meeting must be 
retained for a period of not less than five years.  After the 
expiration of the term of any contract entered into pursuant to 
this subdivision or a period of two years, whichever is less, 
the contract, the bids, and any related materials are public 
data.  The contract, the bids, and any related materials are 
subject to review by the state auditor at any time. 
    (d) Data concerning specific products or services that are 
in direct competition with other providers of goods or services 
in the public or private sector are trade secret information for 
purposes of section 13.37, to the extent disclosure of 
information pertaining to the matters would clearly harm the 
competitive position of the medical center.  The data are trade 
secret information for the term of the contract or a two-year 
period, whichever is less.  
    (e) This subdivision applies to the medical center, 
ambulatory health centers, or other clinics authorized under 
section 383B.219, as well as any other organization, 
association, partnership, or corporation authorized by Hennepin 
county under section 144.581. 
    Sec. 4.  [LOCAL APPROVAL.] 
    This act takes effect the day after the Hennepin county 
board complies with Minnesota Statutes, section 645.021, 
subdivision 3. 
    Approved May 14, 1987