Last week, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) released new guidance related to the sharing of mental health, behavioral health, and substance abuse disorder treatment information. The guidance focuses on how such information may be shared with the patient’s family and other caregivers under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and 42 C.F.R. Part 2 (the regulations governing the use and disclosure of substance abuse treatment records) in various scenarios.
The guidance includes both fact sheets and decision-trees and highlights several scenarios related to caregiver relationships, such as parents of teenage or adult children with mental health or substance abuse issues, parents serving as “personal representatives,” when parents can access minor children’s mental health information, and how to access treatment information about a loved one. The guidance additionally touches on opioid addiction, which is a key focus under the Trump Administration. Within its corresponding press release, HHS reported that it will work to develop model training programs and materials for healthcare providers, patients, and their families pertaining to permitted uses and disclosures of mental and behavioral health information.
Venable’s Healthcare team has significant experience in health information privacy and security and will address any additional questions pertaining to the above. Please contact any of the authors if you have any questions.