I was recently asked whether a physician may disclose information to a family member of a deceased patient for that family member's own purposes. The answer is, yes. A deceased individual's protected health information that is relevant to their own healthcare may be obtained by a family member in two ways.
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1.A HIPAA authorization is not required for disclosures of protected health information for treatment purposes; even the treatment of another individual. So, a practitioner may disclose a decedent's protected health information, without authorization, to a healthcare provider who is treating the surviving relative.
2. If an individual is a legally authorized executor or administrator, or any person who is otherwise legally authorized to act on the behalf of the deceased individual or his estate and it is within the scope of such personal representative's authority under other law to obtain protected health information or provide the appropriate authorization for its disclosure the Rule permits disclosure to the individual.
Should you have any HIPAA related questions, feel free to send them along and I will address them for the group's benefit.
This email is for educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.
