HIPAA Policy on Release of Information
It is University Community Health's moral and legal obligation to ensure the proper and safe care of all patients, protect their rights to privacy and the confidential nature of hospital medical records, and to abide by federal and state privacy laws, including HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act).

Before any patient’s information is released, University Community Health must obtain the patient’s authorization at the time of admission, which meets HIPAA’s requirements. The authorization becomes part of the patient’s medical record. If a patient does not sign the authorization, the hospital may not release the information. The media may only receive information located in the University Community Health facility’s directory.

Statutory and Regulatory Requirements
Laws and regulations are the current primary guideline used by University Community Health when releasing patient information.

A federal law, HIPAA, was signed into law in 1996. The Secretary of Health & Human Services finalized the regulations implementing the protection of patient information provisions on December 27, 2000. Compliance of the privacy regulations was required by April 14, 2003. The privacy regulations permit the use or disclosure of individually identifiable health information only as permitted by the privacy regulations; therefore, an understanding of these regulations is essential when releasing information to the public or media. For more information about HIPAA, click here.