HIPAA

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, often abbreviated HIPAA, is a Clinton-era law known for the stringent privacy requirements it imposed on the healthcare industry. The requirements are so pervasive that if you have utilized many healthcare services at all, you have likely at some point signed a HIPAA waiver. Because of the complexity of the law and potential penalties for violators, many physicians and other healthcare provides have taken an overly cautious approach, requiring consent where no consent is necessary. This accounts for the pervasiveness of waiver requests.

Provisions of HIPAA

HIPAA addressed the issue of preexisting conditions in group plans, providing that such plans may only exclude coverage for preexisting conditions for a period of twelve months—or eighteen months in the case of late enrollment—though such an exclusion could be impermissible if the individual had previously been covered under a different plan. This provision was meant to prevent preexisting conditions from trapping individuals in their jobs. The Affordable Care Act, otherwise known as Obamacare, expanded much of the law’s provisions.

While the provisions dealing with preexisting conditions were a significant change to existing law, the most famous provisions of HIPAA involve the privacy protections the law provides. The law states that no one can access another’s health records without permission. Only the patient, pertinent healthcare professionals, and anyone that the patient has given permission with informed consent may access the information. Emergency situations and court orders provide the only exceptions to this rule.

HIPAA Release

Because of the stringent requirements of the law, a HIPAA release is generally required to allow someone else to view your information. HIPAA releases can therefore serve as an important complement to a living will or healthcare power of attorney, as you would normally want your agent to have access to your medical information. Without a release, your healthcare professional may refuse to disclose the information without a court order.

A HIPAA release must describe the information that may be disclosed, who may access it, and for what purpose it may be disclosed. It must be signed and dated by the person giving the authorization, and it must include an expiration date or a description of an event that terminates the operation of the release.

See Also:

The Living Will

The Durable Power of Attorney