Clear HIPAA Violations and More

[pepper]

Yep, one of my favorite hoax topics.  

In the HIPAA guidelines below this article, it states that "a reporter asking for the patient by name can be privy to the general condition of the patient (If a patient does not object to this information being included in a hospital directory)"

Jermaine's Video Statement
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Statement on the death of Michael Jackson at UCLA Medical Center
By UCLA Newsroom June 25, 2009
The family of Michael Jackson made this brief statement available [Note: To me, this implies "Hey, we at UCLA never made this statement! MJ's family just made this statement available, and they just happened to make it available while they were at UCLA."]on June 25 at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center:

The legendary King of Pop, Michael Jackson, passed away on Thursday, June 25, 2009, at 2:26 p.m. It is believed he suffered cardiac arrest in his home. However, the cause of his death is unknown until results of the autopsy are known.
 
His personal physician, who was with him at the time, attempted to resuscitate Jackson, as did paramedics who transported him to Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center. Upon arriving at the hospital at approximately 1:14 p.m., a team of doctors, including emergency physicians and cardiologists, attempted to resuscitate him for a period of more than one hour but were unsuccessful.
 
Jackson’s family requests that the media respect their privacy during this tragic period of time.
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_____________________

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L.A. Times
Michael Jackson's death: Jermaine Jackson speaks
June 25, 2009 |  6:52 pm

 At a brief news conference in the auditorium of the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center this evening,  Jermaine Jackson sighed audibly several times before addressing reporters.

“This is hard,” he said softly. “My brother, the legendary King of Pop, passed away on Thursday, June 25, 2009 at 2:26 p.m.... It is believed he passed away of cardiac arrest.”

He said Michael Jackson's personal physician, Dr. Tohme R. Tohme, was with him at the house and had tried to resuscitate him [Note: Jermaine did NOT say this.  The writer of this article, and also the UCLA website, infers that Thome was MJ's personal physician]. He said paramedics also tried to revive his brother and “upon arriving at the hospital at 1:14 p.m., a team of doctors, including emergency physicians and a cardiologist, worked to resuscitate him for a period of more than one hour but were unsuccessful.“

Jackson said a definitive cause of death would not be known until an autopsy is performed.

“May Allah be with you, Michael, always,” Jermaine Jackson said, ending the news conference.

UCLA officials did not say anything about Michael Jackson.

“We’re respecting the family’s wishes with respect to the patients’ privacy,” said hospital spokeswoman Roxanne Moster.

During the news conference, fans in the hospital courtyard lit candles and sang Michael Jackson songs.

-- Carla Hall in Westwood

An emotional Jermaine Jackson makes a statement to the press that his brother Michael Jackson had passed away at the UCLA Medical Center in Westwood on June 25, 2009. Genaro Molina / LA Times
________________

UCLA officials did not say anything about Michael Jackson.

UCLA did not say ANYTHING about Michael Jackson.  This is true.  UCLA did not even say the name "Michael Jackson" at this press conference.

“We’re respecting the family’s wishes with respect to the patients’ privacy,” said hospital spokeswoman Roxanne Moster.

The way this particular sentence is written, it makes it sound like we are talking about more than one patient, not a specific patient (like Michael Jackson) [that might just be how the journalist interpreted the spokeswoman's words, however].

An emotional Jermaine Jackson makes a statement to the press that his brother Michael Jackson had passed away at the UCLA Medical Center in Westwood on June 25, 2009.

UCLA wants to make it clear that Jermaine Jackson made a statement to the press, that UCLA did NOT make a statement to the press.

___________________


From the UCLA website
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Patient condition reports

The UCLA media relations staff provides general patient condition information within the limitations imposed by the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). A patient name is required. Release of detailed information or information about minors requires written consent of the parent, guardian or legal representative.

The American Hospital Association recommends the following one-word descriptions of a patient's general condition.

    Undetermined: Patient awaiting physician assessment.
    Good: Vital signs are stable and within normal limits. Patient is conscious and comfortable. Indicators are excellent.
    Fair: Vital signs are stable and within normal limits. Patient is conscious but may be uncomfortable. Indicators are favorable.
    Serious: Vital signs may be unstable and not within normal limits. Patient is acutely ill. Indicators are questionable.
    Critical: Vital signs are unstable and not within normal limits. Patient may be unconscious. Indicators are unfavorable.
    Treated and released: Received treatment but not admitted.
    Treated and transferred: Received treatment. Transferred to a different facility.
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Additionally, the California Hospital Association Guide to the Release of Patient Information to the Media can be located at You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login
 
And it says...
Under HIPAA, information about the condition and
location of a patient may be released only if the
inquiry specifically contains the patient’s name.
No information can be given out if a request does
not include the patient’s name. This is a significant
change to existing California law.
If the patient has not requested that information be
withheld, and the request for information contains
the patient’s name, hospitals generally may release
the patient’s condition and location within the
hospital.

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HIPAA Federal Guidelines

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How will HIPAA change the way medical providers release patient information to the media?
Under new HIPAA regulations, hospitals may maintain a directory that may only include a patient's name, location in the hospital, general condition, and religious affiliation. If a hospital chooses to maintain a directory, a patient must be given the opportunity to object to or restrict the use or disclosure of information contained in the directory. If a patient does not object to this information being included in a hospital directory, a reporter asking for the patient by name can be privy to the general condition of the patient. If media does not ask for the patient by name, no individual identifiable information about the patient may be disclosed.

If a patient has been given the opportunity but has chosen not to restrict their information, what kinds of condition information may be disclosed?
If HIPAA privacy standards are met, general-condition information may be provided that does not communicate specific information about the individual. The American Hospital Association recommends the following one-word descriptions of a patient's condition.
Undetermined: Patient awaiting physician and assessment.
Good: Vital signs are stable and within normal limits. Patient is conscious and comfortable. Indicators are excellent.
Fair: Vital signs are stable and within normal limits. Patient is conscious but may be uncomfortable. Indicators are favorable.
Serious: Vitals signs may be unstable and not within normal limits. Patient is acutely ill. Indicators are questionable.
Critical: Vital signs are unstable and not within normal limits. Patient may be unconscious. Indicators are unfavorable.
Treated and Released: Patient received treatment but was not admitted.
Treated and Transferred: Received treatment. Transferred to a different facility. (Although a hospital may disclose that a patient was treated and released, it may not release information regarding the date of release or where the patient went upon release without patient authorization.)

What about patients who are unconscious or otherwise unable to give advance consent for release of their information?
The privacy regulations address situations where the opportunity to object to or restrict the use or disclosure of information cannot be practicably provided because of an individual's incapacity or emergency treatment circumstance. In such a case, a health care provider may use or disclose the patient’s general condition if the use and disclosure is (1) consistent with a prior expressed preference of the individual, if any, that is known to the covered health care provider; and (2) in the individual's best interest as determined by the covered health care provider, in the exercise of professional judgment. Both conditions must be true for a provider to release patient information under HIPAA if the patient is incapacitated.

So, for example, if a reporter is covering a traffic accident and calls the hospital asking for information about the condition of a vehicle's occupants, citing the location of the accident but not the victims' names, can the hospital provide a condition report?
Information in the directory (i.e. general condition) may be released only if the media or the public asks for the patient by name and only if the patient has not objected to or restricted the release of such information. If a patient is unable to communicate for the purpose of objecting to or restricting the use of directory information, such information can be released only if any past preferences are known and disclosure is in the best interests of the patient, in the professional judgment of the medical services provider.

What if the reporter asks about the accident victim by name?
If an individual, including a representative of the media, asks for information about the patient by name, only general condition may be released and only if the patient has not objected to or restricted the release of that information.


What if a reporter calls with information that is already part of the public record, such as name or condition of the patient obtained from police reports?
Police reports and other information about hospital patients are often obtained by members of the media. The claim is frequently made that once information about a patient is in the public domain, the media are entitled to any and all information about that individual. This is not true. Health care providers are required to observe the general prohibitions against releasing patient information found in the HIPAA privacy standards, state statutes or regulations and the common law, regardless of what information is in the hands of public agencies or the public in general. Requests for a patient’s health information from the media on grounds that a public agency, such as law enforcement, is involved in the matter should be denied. (If the inquiry is made by patient name a general one-word condition can be released, so as the patient has not opted out of the directory.)

Can a hospital confirm that a patient has died?
Although hospitals have traditionally released information about patient deaths to the media upon request, HIPAA allows the disclosure of such information only in response to certain law enforcement inquiries; to coroners, medical examiners and funeral directors to allow them to do their jobs; and to family, a personal representative or another person directly responsible for the patient's care. Reports to public health authorities in their role of collecting vital statistics are also allowed.
One exception to this prohibition would be within the facility directory exception discussed earlier. If the patient is still within the facility, then it is arguable that death is a condition that may be disclosed as a general condition of the patient after next of kin has been notified. If the deceased patient has been removed from the facility, then the facility must obtain a signed authorization from the patient's personal representative to release information about the patient's death. No other details, however, about the circumstances, time, cause, etc. can be released without written authorization from the patient’s representative.