patient minor login

by Prof. Nakia Runte 3 min read

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When to grant patient portal access solely to minors?

Healthcare providers that do not have that ability to segregate sensitive data may need to grant a patient portal access solely to minors at age 13 so the parent cannot see their information. In the interview, Greene also discusses: The struggles healthcare providers will have with balancing strong authentication with easy access;

How can health care providers give parents access to minor medical records?

Healthcare providers can choose to give parents access to the minor's records via a patient portal, but the providers should consider segregating certain information to make those confidential services inaccessible by the parent, Greene says.

Can a patient portal be used for a parent?

Some healthcare providers, for example, might provide parents with access to the patient portal, but may be able to segregate certain information that is not accessible to the patient portal for that patient population, so that you know the parent is not going to be able to see certain services.

Can minors access personal information under HIPAA?

GREENE: This is a very tough situation. You're going to have, under the law, some minors who have their parent or guardian as their personal representative under HIPAA who has the right to access their information. But, minors may be able to consent to certain services, such as reproductive health services, or substance abuse treatment.

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What is meaningful use stage 2?

In particular, meaningful use Stage 2 is pushing for healthcare providers to provide more immediate access, particularly the ability to view, download, and transmit information through what is normally expected to be some sort of patient portal.

Why does a healthcare provider sign up for a password?

The healthcare provider signs them up, creates an account, and assigns a password because they know the individual; they've checked the driver's license or some other proof of identification of the individual. The alternative can be remote authentication, where you first do identity-proofing remotely.

Is a patient portal a secure email?

So for example, the patient portal may also be a messaging portal where a secure e-mail is received by an individual. They receive an unsecure e-mail that just says they've got a message waiting for you at the patient portal. They log in [to portal] and see their information that way.

Is it a HIPAA violation to disclose medical information to parents?

Because some minors have the right not to disclose certain medical information, such as reproductive health services, to their parents, it could be a HIPAA violation to disclose the services to the parent, says Greene, a partner at the law firm Davis Wright Tremaine.

Can a parent access a minor's medical records?

Healthcare providers can choose to give parents access to the minor's records via a patient portal, but the providers should consider segregating certain information to make those confidential services inaccessible by the parent, Greene says.

Can minors have their parent's information?

You're going to have, under the law, some minors who have their parent or guardian as their personal representative under HIPAA who has the right to access their information . But, minors may be able to consent to certain services, such as reproductive health services, or substance abuse treatment.

Is there a regulation that requires a patient to have a copy of their medical records?

The other major regulation is HIPAA, in that there has been a longstanding obligation to provide patients with a copy of their medical and billing records, or certain other information in what is referred to as a "designated record set.".

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The Role of Patient Portals

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MARIANNE MCGEE:What are patient portals? What sorts of organizations are launching them, and why are they important from a regulatory standpoint? ADAM GREENE:Patient portals usually refer to some way for a patient to be able to view some portion of the electronic health records ... of a healthcare provider. ... You c…
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Privacy Challenges with Patient Portals

  • MCGEE: What do you think are the biggest privacyand security challenges related to patient portals? GREENE: I think one of them is authentication. How do you know that the patient is who the patient really says he or she is? There are a number of different strategies for trying to tackle that. Another privacy and security challenge here is that you have an Internet-facing website, ess…
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Authentication For Portal Use

  • MCGEE:What are the various ways that individuals can be credentialed and authenticated for accessing patient portals? GREENE:There are two stages here; the initial identity-proofing and the subsequent authentication every time someone logs into the patient portal. The identity-proofing normally happens either in-person or online. The in-person part could happen as part of the regis…
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Why only Passwords?

  • MCGEE:Why do you think most organizations that have a patient portals will go with the username and password only? GREENE:Difficulty and lack of demand. I think there is going to be a minority of patients who may want the more robust features of multi-factor authentication, and may want to feel confident that their information is not going to be accessible to others based on just the …
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Minors' EHRs

  • MCGEE:What are the privacy and security challenges involved with providing access to health records of minors via the patient portals? GREENE:This is a very tough situation. You're going to have, under the law, some minors who have their parent or guardian as their personal representative under HIPAA who has the right to access their information. But, minors may be a…
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Adult Caregivers

  • MCGEE:What are the privacy and security challenges involved with giving access to elderly patients' information to say, an adult children? GREENE: I think it's a great idea. I think you definitely want to give the tools so that the patient does not have to share their username and password, but instead could have a greater level of control by creating a delegate account wher…
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Other Methods of Access

  • MCGEE:How do patient portals compare with other methods of providing patients with access to their health information, such as secure e-mail? GREENE:I think it is much easier to use. It will also link in sometimes with these other practices. So for example, the patient portal may also be a messaging portal where a secure e-mail is received by an individual. They receive an unsecure e …
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Biggest Emerging Threats

  • MCGEE:What do you think the biggest emerging privacy and security threats for portals? GREENE:I think as you get more of these, there will be more stories of vulnerabilities that have been identified. If the individual changes the URL by one number, and they are able to see someone else's information, I think we'll see security challenges on that front. I think we're going to see a c…
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