Does Filing for Workers’ Comp Mean Forgoing Some of Your HIPAA Rights?
The Health Insurance Portable Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) was created to ensure that everyone’s medical information and privacy is protected. After HIPAA was enacted, medical personnel needed to be authorized in order to obtain access to medical information.
When it comes to workers’ compensation, there is some confusion as to how HIPAA comes into play.
Since employees filing for workers’ compensation are required to provide their medical information in order to file their claims, many think that HIPAA is involved. However, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, this isn’t the case.
“The HIPAA Privacy Rule does not apply to entities that are either workers’ compensation insurers, workers’ compensation administrative agencies, or employers, except to the extent they may otherwise be covered entities. However, these entities need access to the health information of individuals who are injured on the job or who have a work-related illness to process or adjudicate claims, or to coordinate care under workers’ compensation systems.”
HIPAA works much in the same way as doctor-patient privilege. Without you giving written, explicit permission to divulge any of your sensitive medical information, your doctor(s) is bound by your privacy to not speak about your medical records. Any conversation you have with your doctor has to stay private.
In cases of workers’ compensation, however, some of these privacies are stripped away. If you’re injured at work and file for workers’ compensation, your doctor is required to share your medical records with your workers’ comp insurance company as well as your employer when they request it.
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Additionally, your doctor may even need to compile reports of conversations the 2 of you have during your appointments and submit them to your employer and their insurer. These reports can also be used before a judge during a workers’ comp hearing.
What’s more, neither your employer nor their insurance company has to get your permission to request or receive this information. By filing for workers’ compensation, you waive the right to keep your medical records confidential.
Even though your doctor is within their rights to share your pertinent medical information with your employer or insurance company after an injury, there are limitations. The only information they’re required to share is the information that is directly related to your work-related injury. Your doctor has no right to share your entire medical record.
This is just one of the many ways that workers’ compensation law can get complicated. If you or a loved one was injured on the job, you need the assistance of an experienced workers’ compensation attorney at Gerber & Holder Law. Together, we can review your case and begin working toward getting you the compensation you deserve.
About Ben Gerber
Georgia workers’ compensation attorney Ben Gerber, the co-founder of Gerber & Holder Workers’ Compensation Attorneys, exclusively represents injured workers in Atlanta, Athens and throughout the state. He uses his deep knowledge of employment law and extensive legal experience to help Georgia’s injured workers get the maximum compensation they’re owed under state laws.