HIPAA Authorizations in Powell

Decide what information access should accomplish

Start with the practical purpose: who should be able to communicate with your healthcare providers, and what information should be shared for that purpose? Consider whether you want to name one recipient or more, whether the authorization should cover all health information or a narrower scope, and how long it should remain in effect.

Information access and healthcare authority are separate questions. A person may be allowed to receive information without being authorized to make healthcare decisions. Conversely, state-law authority may make someone a HIPAA personal representative; a separate information-sharing authorization is not always required for that role. The documents should be considered together rather than treated as interchangeable.

• Recipient: identify the person or people you want involved in information sharing.
• Scope: decide whether the intended access is broad or limited to a particular purpose or information.
• Duration: consider how long the authorization should apply and whether that matches your plan.

Compare the documents by the job they do

A HIPAA authorization addresses disclosure of health information. A healthcare power of attorney or advance directive addresses healthcare decision-making authority and preferences. A financial power of attorney addresses authority to act on financial matters; it does not automatically make its agent a healthcare decision-maker.

The right combination depends on the roles you want each person to have. If someone should both receive information and make healthcare decisions when authorized to do so, make that distinction explicit in your planning. Tennessee’s Advance Directive for Health Care form addresses an agent or alternate and healthcare preferences, and includes instructions concerning signing and sharing copies.

• Information recipient: may receive information within the authorization’s terms.
• Healthcare agent: may have decision-making authority under the relevant healthcare document and applicable law.
• Financial agent: acts within the scope and limits of a financial power of attorney.

Prepare a one-page access plan

Before discussing documents, write a short access plan. List each intended recipient, the information-sharing purpose, the scope you have in mind, and the desired duration. Then note separately who you want to make healthcare decisions and which document you believe addresses that role.

Bring the plan alongside copies of any existing HIPAA authorization, healthcare power of attorney, or advance directive. Mark any differences in names, responsibilities, or intended duration. This gives you a concrete basis for identifying whether the documents work together or leave an uncertainty to resolve.

• Who should receive information, and for what purpose?
• What information should be covered, and for how long?
• Who should make healthcare decisions, and which document addresses that role?
• Do existing documents name the same people and describe compatible responsibilities?

Questions to resolve before signing

Ask whether the authorization’s recipients, scope, and duration match the access you actually want; how it relates to your healthcare agent or advance directive; and whether an existing person’s authority under state law affects the need for a separate authorization. Do not assume that one document grants every kind of authority.

Dale Law Group, PLLC, led by Carolyn D. Dale, provides estate-planning services from its Murfreesboro office and serves clients across Tennessee. Powell is an unincorporated Census-designated place in Knox County, not a separate city government. The firm’s office is in Murfreesboro, not Powell.