HIPAA
Federal Privacy Rules regarding personal health information are now in effect.
1. How do I find out what the rules mean to me?
Our Notice of Privacy Practice is available in our lobby and can be read online. This spells out what our office can and can not do with your or your child’s health information. Basically any uses that are for the purposes of treatment, payment and other health care operations are allowed. If something does not fit into one of these categories than a special authorization will need to be filled out giving us permission to release the information to another party. This will NOT interfere with our ability to communicate with referral physicians who are involved in your treatment, as well as laboratory facilities and x-ray facilities.
2. Wasn’t my information private before?
Medical information was held private under varied guidelines (not specific laws) before. Now there are specific laws that protect your privacy and for the first time criminal penalties for the improper release or use of health information.
3. This sounds like it creates a lot of paperwork for me.....
We hope not. The first change you will notice is the first time you come into our office we will make available our Notice of Privacy Practice and ask you to sign an acknowledgement stating that you received the notice. Fortunately this is a one time thing except for one particular exception.
4. Exception?
Under the new rules the person in charge of the patient’s health information is the legal representative of the patient. This is the same person who is legally able to consent for medical treatment. A teenager becomes their own legal representative of their own health information after turning fifteen years old. (Regarding certain health topics this occurs even earlier.) At which time they must now sign an acknowledgment for themselves. This also gives them some new protections of their own health information even though they are still under eighteen.
5. Who do I call if I have a specific question about privacy
A good place to start is with the provider you recently saw in the office or your child’s primary care physician. Alternatively you can contact our clinic’s privacy official as listed in our Notice of Privacy Practices.
Adolescents and HIPAA
What do the federal HIPAA rules say about teenagers?
For most children, a parent is the legal representative for the patient. The legal representative is the person who controls the patient’s protected health information (including medical records, lab results, and insurance information). This control includes the right to view and obtain copies of protected health information, as well as the right to authorize release of protected health information to other entities.
Under Oregon law, a person can make his or her own medical decisions beginning at age 15. Federal HIPAA rules tie the control of protected health information to the age of consent for medical care. Thus, because 15-year-old Oregonians have the legal right to make their own medical decisions, these teenagers also assume control of their own protected health information. In other words, teenagers beyond their 15th birthday, even though they are not yet adults in most other areas of the law, must now themselves consent to their own medical care and authorize release of their own protected health information.
Does this mean that I, as a parent, am no longer able to access my teenage patient’s medical records once he turns 15?
In general, a parent still has access to any protected health information generated during visits to our office or telephone calls in which the parent participated, as well as any information needed for the parent to assist in meeting the health care needs of his or her teenager. However, protected health information that is generated outside of the parent’s presence is under the sole control of the teenage patient. In other words, the presence of another person during office visits or other encounters with our medical providers implies that the patient consents for us to share protected health information with that person - but only if the information is related to that particular encounter - whether that person is a parent, relative, or just a friend providing support.
All that being said, Oregon law also gives our providers the discretion to discuss any of a minor’s medical diagnoses or treatments with a parent or legal guardian - even without the minor’s consent. Our providers may also advise a minor’s parent or legal guardian of the diagnosis or treatment of emotional disorders or substance abuse if the provider believes that the disclosure is clinically appropriate and is in the minor’s best interests.
Can my 15-year-year-old request that some or all of her protected health information not be released to me, even though I am her parent (or legal guardian)?
Yes, HIPAA rules permit teenagers who have passed their 15th birthday to make such requests. Our clinic will only agree to such a request when it is truly deemed to be in the best interests of the patient and will not put another person at risk.
But my 15-year-old is, well, only 15 years old!!! He is just a child!
We view the medical care of teenagers as a collaborative effort between the patient, parent(s), other adults involved in the teenager’s life, and the health care provider. While a patient over 15 years old is not yet an adult, we recognize the growing role they must play in their own health care decisions as they begin to enter adulthood. We value parental support during this transition and will always recommend that teenagers involve their parents in health care decisions.
If you have additional questions about how HIPAA privacy rules affect teenage patients at our office, please speak with a physician or with our privacy officer.
The comments here are for informational purposes only. Please refer to our notice of privacy practices for a thorough explanation of our policies.
