How will HIPAA change the way medical providers release patient information to the media?
Under new HIPAA regulations, BayCare hospitals will maintain a directory of patients who have given their consent for release of certain personal health information. Patients have the right 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.
