Don’t Miss This Patient Privacy Exception
Question: Can I release a patient’s balance over the phone or in person to someone other than the patient? New Mexico Subscriber Answer: According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), a covered entity or business associate acting on behalf of a covered entity — like a collection agency — can “disclose protected health information [PHI] as necessary to obtain payment for health care, and does not limit to whom such a disclosure may be made.” While a practice can disclose some PHI, HHS warns covered entities that the HIPAA Privacy Rule requires them to limit how much information they release, saying that it should be the minimum necessary to obtain payment. If patients and practices have agreed to certain communications being OK or not OK, or have specified certain restrictions on their PHI — including whether some parties are prohibited from receiving any disclosures of PHI — then practices should abide by the patient’s wishes as best they can. Rachel Dorrell, MA, MS, CPC-A, CPPM, Development Editor, AAPC
