HIPAA Authorizations in Liberty

Match access to the person’s role

Start by separating two questions: who should be able to receive information, and who should be able to make healthcare decisions if you cannot communicate? A HIPAA authorization can permit information sharing; standing alone, it does not appoint a healthcare decision-maker.

A person with healthcare authority under applicable state law may be a HIPAA personal representative. That means a separate authorization is not automatically required in every situation. Identify the authority each person is meant to have rather than assuming an authorization and a healthcare power of attorney do the same job.

Choose the scope and duration deliberately

Compare a narrow authorization for a named person or defined information need with broader access for a person expected to help coordinate care. Consider whether the recipient needs access to all health information or only specified information, and whether access should apply now, later, or for a limited period.

Check the document’s scope, duration and limits against your intended use. A financial agent’s authority under a power of attorney is a separate role; it does not, by itself, establish healthcare authority. Likewise, an authorization to receive information does not grant decision-making power.

Prepare a health-information access checklist

Before discussing documents, write a short checklist so your choices are concrete and consistent. Note the people you want to involve, the information each person needs, and the circumstances in which access should begin or end.

• List each proposed recipient and their intended role: information recipient, healthcare agent, alternate agent, or another role.
• For each recipient, identify the health information or care-related purpose for which access is intended.
• Record your preferred start point, duration, and any limits or changes you may want to revisit.
• Gather existing HIPAA authorizations, healthcare powers of attorney, and advance directives so the documents can be compared together.

Coordinate with healthcare decision documents

Tennessee’s Advance Directive for Health Care form addresses an agent or alternate and healthcare preferences, and includes instructions about signing and sharing copies. Review that document alongside any HIPAA authorization so the people named, their roles, and your intended access are not confused.

When reviewing the set, ask whether the person receiving information is also meant to make decisions, whether an alternate is identified where appropriate, and whether the information-sharing document remains consistent with your current preferences. Dale Law Group, PLLC offers HIPAA authorizations, healthcare powers of attorney, and advance healthcare directives and living wills.

Questions to bring to a planning discussion

For people in Liberty, the practical next step is to gather the documents you already use and identify the access decision you want to make. The firm’s office is in Murfreesboro; Liberty’s municipal directory is a public municipal-information resource, not a healthcare-document or law-firm office.

• Who should receive information, and what should each person be able to learn?
• Is anyone intended to make healthcare decisions, or only to receive information?
• Do the authorization and any healthcare directive identify consistent people and roles?
• When should access begin, and what would prompt you to revisit its scope or duration?