The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPPA) provides that absent a written statement from a patient, a health care provider cannot disclose medical information to anyone other than the patient or the person appointed under state law to make health care decisions for the patient. In the event that a health care provider fails to comply with HIPPA, there are civil penalties plus a criminal fine of $50,000.00 and up to one year of imprisonment for each occurrence.
As such, doctors, hospitals and other health care providers are extremely reluctant to release any information absent a release from the patient. The inability to obtain information about a loved one can be very upsetting especially when the information regards the treatment as part of long-term care.
Therefore, you should consider executing a document specifically authorizing the release of this information to loved ones so they can access the necessary medical information to make a well-informed decision about your medical treatment if you are unable to make these decisions yourself due to a temporary or permanent condition.
In the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, a Health Care Proxy is the appropriate document to provide this release. Your estate planning attorney can create such a HIPAA Authorization for you.
By: Todd C. Ratner, Esquire
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