New fact sheets on permitted uses and disclosures of protected health information (PHI) for treatment and health care operations purposes under the Health Information Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) were released by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) and Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT (ONC).  HIPAA generally permits physicians to use and disclose protected health information for treatment and health care operations without first obtaining a patient’s written authorization. 

The fact sheets were announced in the first of a series of blog posts created to correct misunderstandings about HIPAA, address physician concerns related to the exchange of PHI in the absence of patient authorization and demonstrate how HIPAA supports interoperability by allowing the transfer of electronic PHI through Certified Electronic Health Record Technology or other electronic means.

The AMA has also created a toolkit on related aspects of HIPAA, which includes the requirements around privacy and security.