Iowa Code § 135P.1 (2026)
Definitions
For the purposes of this chapter, unless the context otherwise requires:
1. “Adverse health care incident” means an objective and definable outcome arising from or related to patient care that results in the death or physical injury of a patient.
2. “Health care provider” means a physician or osteopathic physician licensed under chapter 148, a physician assistant licensed under chapter 148C, a podiatrist licensed under chapter 149, a chiropractor licensed under chapter 151, a licensed practical nurse, a registered nurse, or an advanced registered nurse practitioner licensed under chapter 152 or 152E, a dentist licensed under chapter 153, an optometrist licensed under chapter 154, a pharmacist licensed under chapter 155A, or any other person who is licensed, certified, or otherwise authorized or permitted by the law of this state to administer health care in the ordinary course of business or in the practice of a profession.
3. “Health facility” means an institutional health facility as defined in section 135.61, a birth center as defined in section 135.131, a hospice licensed under chapter 135J, a home health agency as defined in section 144D.1, an assisted living program certified under chapter 231C, a clinic, a community health center, or the university of Iowa hospitals and clinics, and includes any corporation, professional corporation, partnership, limited liability company, limited liability partnership, or other entity comprised of such health facilities.
4. “Open discussion” means all communications that are made under section 135P.3, and includes all memoranda, work products, documents, and other materials that are prepared for or submitted in the course of or in connection with communications under section 135P.3.
5. “Patient” means a person who receives medical care from a health care provider, or if the person is a minor, deceased, or incapacitated, the person’s legal representative. 2015 Acts, ch 33, §1; 2017 Acts, ch 107, §1, 5; 2020 Acts, ch 1045, §7; 2023 Acts, ch 73, §3; 2025 Acts, ch 43, §5; 2025 Acts, ch 120, §69 Referred to in §147.136A See Code editor’s note on simple harmonization at the beginning of this Code volume Subsection 3 amended \n