Missluminous

[sOUNDCLOUD][/sOUNDCLOUD]Not only is there HIPAA, but substance abuse patients have additional federal laws protecting their privacy. Anyone who is receiving alcohol or drug abuse treatment (a patient) must consent to the release of any medical records/information. Additionally, this federal law overrides state law! So if your patient is a nurse, and is getting substance abuse treatment -at your facility or elsewhere, you are NOT supposed to report them, even if your state law says you can/should. I also saw a second medscape Q&A where a nurse had a patient who was also a nurse. The patient told them that she was taking drugs from her job and using them. They were told by their board and lawyers NOT to report because the patient is protected by HIPAA. She asked the health care attorney if that was correct. The healthcare attorney also stated that you can not report a nurse if she is/was your patient due to HIPAA.