Can the Medical Examiner Office obtain medical records from hospitals and private physicians? Do the new HIPAA laws apply to the Medical Examiner Office?
Yes. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) of 1996 is designed to protect the privacy of a patients health and medical records. HIPAA explicitly states that neither authorization by next of kin, nor a court order, is required to release private health information (PHI) to the County Medical Examiner in line of his or her duties [see 45 C.F.R. 164.512(g)]. Researching a decedents past medical history is the first step in conducting a post-mortem investigation. Not only deaths from apparent natural causes, but also homicide, suicide, and accident investigations as well. It is vital that any medical examiner office obtain the most accurate medical history possible. Once the decedents PHI is in the medical examiners case file, it too becomes protected by HIPAA laws, and is used only for the purposes of the investigation. Created even before the HIPAA laws, TCA 38-7-117 allows the medical examiner office to subpoena records through the appropriate district attorney
Related Questions
- Can the Medical Examiner Office obtain medical records from hospitals and private physicians? Do the new HIPAA laws apply to the Medical Examiner Office?
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