HIPAA Authorizations in New Market

Decide what the authorization should do

Start with the practical question: who should be able to receive information, and for what purpose? You might want a person to receive information about a particular aspect of your care, or you may want broader sharing with more than one person. The right scope depends on your preferences; a broader authorization is not automatically better.

Consider whether permission should cover particular information or providers, and whether it should continue for a defined period or under stated conditions. The authorization’s scope and duration are meaningful choices. Be clear about whether a recipient may receive information only, or whether you also want someone to make healthcare decisions if you cannot.

• Recipient or recipients you want to name
• Information or care-related subject matter to include
• Any limits on access, and how long permission should apply

Information access is different from healthcare authority

A HIPAA authorization permits information sharing within its terms. By itself, it does not appoint someone to make healthcare decisions. A healthcare power of attorney or advance healthcare directive addresses a different question: who may act as your healthcare decision-maker and, in the case of a directive, what preferences you want communicated.

The roles are not interchangeable. Depending on state law, someone with healthcare authority may qualify as your HIPAA personal representative; a separate information-sharing authorization alone does not create that authority. If you want one person both to make decisions when authorized and to receive information, consider whether your documents work together and clearly express that intention.

Prepare a recipient-and-scope worksheet

Before discussing or completing documents, write down your choices in a simple worksheet. For each person, note the information you want shared, any limits, and the period or circumstances in which permission should apply. Add a separate column for healthcare decision-making authority so that an information recipient is not accidentally treated as a decision-maker.

Gather any existing healthcare power of attorney or advance healthcare directive, along with copies of authorizations you have already given. The Tennessee Advance Directive for Health Care form includes an agent and alternate, healthcare preferences, and instructions about signing and sharing copies. Use the current form and its instructions rather than relying on an old copy or assumptions about how to complete it.

• List each intended recipient and the reason they need access
• Identify included information and any exclusions or limits
• Note the intended duration or ending condition
• Compare the worksheet with existing healthcare documents

Questions to resolve before signing

Ask whether the wording gives each intended recipient the access you want without granting broader access than intended. Check that the authorization’s duration and any limits are understandable, and that it does not confuse permission to receive information with authority to make decisions. If you have named different people in different documents, consider whether their roles are clear and consistent.

Dale Law Group, PLLC offers HIPAA authorization planning as part of its Tennessee estate-planning services. For New Market residents, the key planning task is matching the document to your information-sharing preferences and coordinating it with any healthcare decision-making documents you use.