HIPAA Compliant Medical Release

This section has less to do with the law than it has to do with practicality.

Under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), both a spouse and a person holding a medical power of attorney should be allowed access to records.  However, fears over the financial penalties for violating HIPAA have caused many hospitals to ignore the authority of those holding a Medical Power of Attorney.

Real Life Example
Consider the story of another estate planning attorney:

We will call his mother Martha and his wife Jane.  Martha was feeling very ill one day so Jane took her to the hospital where Martha was admitted.  After spending some time at Martha's bedside Jane returned home to take care of some things.  At her first opportunity Jane called the hospital to see how her mother, Martha, was doing.

The nurse who answered told Jane that she was sorry but she could not share any protected medical information with Jane.  Jane informed the nurse that she had Medical Power of Attorney for her mother and that the hospital had it on file.  The nurse looked up the information and informed Jane that she could see that Jane had authority to make medical decisions for her mother but that their legal department's interpretation of the HIPAA laws was that they could still not share any information with her about her mother's condition without a HIPAA compliant medical release on file.

Fortunately, Jane was able to get this worked out with the hospital but it took the better part of the day and was very frustrating.

Practically Speaking
Most hospitals by now have realized what is appropriate and what is not.  However, it is much easier to have a HIPAA compliant medical release for each of the individuals who you wish to be able to find out how you are doing.  This is a simple measure that can prevent unnecessary delays and significant emotional stress.