HIPAA Authorizations in Mount Carmel

Choose access separately from decision-making

A HIPAA authorization is for information sharing. It can identify people you want to be able to receive health information, with the scope and duration set out in the document. It does not, by itself, appoint someone to make healthcare decisions for you.

Healthcare decision-making authority is a separate question. Under federal HIPAA guidance, state-law authority can make someone a personal representative for relevant health information. A separate authorization is not always needed for that person. The right approach depends on the authority involved and the access you want others to have.

Compare the access you want

Before choosing a document or recipient, distinguish ordinary information access from authority to act on your behalf. A person you want kept informed may not be the same person you choose as a healthcare agent. You may also want different people to have different levels of access.

• Recipient: Who should be able to request or receive information? Consider naming the people you actually expect to communicate with your care team.
• Scope: What information should the authorization cover? Think about whether you want broad access or a narrower purpose, and describe the choice clearly.
• Duration: How long should access last? Consider the period the authorization should cover and whether you want it to continue under the terms you select.
• Authority: Who, if anyone, should make healthcare decisions when you cannot? Address that separately through appropriate healthcare planning.

Prepare a one-page access plan

A simple preparation tool is a one-page list that separates each person’s role from the information they may access. Bring it to a planning discussion rather than relying on memory or assuming that a family relationship automatically answers the authorization question.

• For each person, note their name, relationship, and whether you want them informed, authorized to receive information, or named for a healthcare decision-making role.
• Record the information or purpose you want covered and your preferred duration or limits.
• Gather existing healthcare powers of attorney, advance directives, and authorizations. Note where copies are kept and who has them.
• Flag any current document whose recipients, scope, or duration no longer match your wishes.

Coordinate the documents and ask clear questions

Tennessee’s Advance Directive for Health Care form addresses an agent or alternate and healthcare preferences, and includes instructions for sharing copies. It is related to, but not interchangeable with, an information-sharing authorization. Review the documents together so the people and roles you identify are consistent with the access you intend.

Dale Law Group, PLLC offers HIPAA authorizations and related healthcare planning, including healthcare powers of attorney and advance healthcare directives. A planning conversation can clarify which document addresses each goal and what information to have ready. The firm serves Tennessee; its office is in Murfreesboro.

• Does this document grant information access, healthcare decision-making authority, or both?
• Are the recipients and limits clear, and how does this authorization fit with my existing directive?
• Who should receive copies, and how should I update the plan if my wishes change?