HIPAA has been the foundation for healthcare privacy for nearly three decades and sets the standards that protect patient data. But in an effort to make protected health information (PHI) more accessible to patients, regulations like Right of Access give patients certain rights when it comes to requesting their own health information. HealthMark COO and General Counsel Joe Licata provided his insights on the differences between HIPAA authorizations and Right of Access in For the Record Magazine’s August newsletter.
A patient’s health information is some of the most highly protected data under the law. Over the last two decades, HIPAA has governed how PHI is shared, exchanged, and accessed. One of HIPAA’s main goals is to ensure that medical records are only released to a party authorized to receive them.
While it’s important that medical records remain secure, it’s equally important that they’re accessible to patients without too many barriers. Enter patient right of access requests. This provision in HIPAA allows patients or personal representatives of patients to request and receive medical records with fewer barriers (and, therefore, fewer protections) than in a traditional HIPAA authorization.
You can read the full article here.