State hospital association asks hospitals to amend disclosure rules
HIPAA Weekly Advisor, December 20, 2004
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The Washington State Hospital Association (WSHA) requested Wednesday that all state hospitals loosen their guidelines about disclosing to families the location and condition information of patients unable to make the decision themselves, according to the Seattle Times. Hospitals must still ask patients who can choose for themselves whether they want the information released.
Most of the state's hospitals thought they had to refuse to disclose this information because of the HIPAA privacy regulations-a broad misconception. The law prohibits wrongful disclosure.
According to the Times, the policy backed by WSHA also asks hospitals to
- refuse release of information if doing so is in the best interest of the patient (i.e., a victim of domestic violence)
- follow state laws prohibiting disclosure about certain patients (i.e., mental health patients)
No other state hospital organization has backed a similar initiative, according to a spokesman from the American Hospital Association.
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