Including Families in Mental Health Recovery Act of 2015

Summary: Including Families in Mental Health Recovery Act of 2015 Amends the HITECH Act to direct the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to promulgate regulations clarifying the circumstances under which, consistent with the standards governing the privacy and security of individually identifiable health information promulgated under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), health care providers and covered entities may disclose the protected health information of patients with a mental illness, including for purposes of:   communicating with a patient's family, friends, or caregivers, including about treatments, side effects, risk factors, and the availability of community resources, with or without patient consent;   considering the patient's capacity to agree or object to the sharing of patient information;   involving a patient's family members, friends, or caregivers in the patient's care plan in dealing with patient failures to adhere to medication or other therapy;   communicating with family members, caregivers, law enforcement, or others when the patient presents a serious and imminent threat of harm to self or others; and   communicating to law enforcement and family members or caregivers about the admission or release of a patient who was admitted to a facility for an emergency psychiatric hold or involuntary treatment.  Requires HHS to: (1) carry out such provisions in coordination with its Office for Civil Rights of HHS; and (2) ensure that the regulations pertaining to such provisions are consistent with the guidance entitled "HIPAA Privacy Rule and Sharing Information Related to Mental Health," issued by HHS on February 20, 2014. Directs HHS to develop and disseminate model programs for: (1) training health care providers regarding the circumstances under which the protected health information of patients with a mental illness may be disclosed, (2) training lawyers and others in the legal profession on such circumstances, and (3) training patients and their families regarding their rights to protect and obtain information.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Including Families in Mental Health 
Recovery Act of 2015''.

SEC. 2. CLARIFICATION OF CIRCUMSTANCES UNDER WHICH DISCLOSURE OF 
              PROTECTED HEALTH INFORMATION OF MENTAL ILLNESS PATIENTS 
              IS PERMITTED.

    The HITECH Act (title XIII of division A of Public Law 111-5) is 
amended by adding at the end of subtitle D of such Act (42 U.S.C. 17921 
et seq.) the following:

 ``PART 3--IMPROVED PRIVACY AND SECURITY PROVISIONS FOR MENTAL ILLNESS 
                                PATIENTS

``SEC. 13431. CLARIFICATION OF CIRCUMSTANCES UNDER WHICH DISCLOSURE OF 
              PROTECTED HEALTH INFORMATION IS PERMITTED.

    ``(a) In General.--Not later than one year after the date of 
enactment of the Including Families in Mental Health Recovery Act of 
2015, the Secretary shall promulgate final regulations clarifying the 
circumstances under which, consistent with the standards governing the 
privacy and security of individually identifiable health information 
promulgated by the Secretary under sections 262(a) and 264 of the 
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, health 
care providers and covered entities may disclose the protected health 
information of patients with a mental illness, including for purposes 
of--
            ``(1) communicating with a patient's family, caregivers, 
        friends, or others involved in the patient's care, including 
        communication about treatments, side effects, risk factors, and 
        the availability of community resources;
            ``(2) communicating with family or caregivers when the 
        patient is an adult;
            ``(3) communicating with the parent or caregiver of a 
        patient who is a minor;
            ``(4) considering the patient's capacity to agree or object 
        to the sharing of their information;
            ``(5) communicating and sharing information with a 
        patient's family or caregivers when--
                    ``(A) the patient consents; or
                    ``(B) the patient does not consent, but the patient 
                lacks the capacity to agree or object and the 
                communication or sharing of information is in the 
                patient's best interest;
            ``(6) involving a patient's family members, friends, or 
        caregivers, or others involved in the patient's care in the 
        patient's care plan, including treatment and medication 
        adherence, in dealing with patient failures to adhere to 
        medication or other therapy;
            ``(7) listening to or receiving information from family 
        members or caregivers about their loved ones receiving mental 
        illness treatment;
            ``(8) communicating with family members, caregivers, law 
        enforcement, or others when the patient presents a serious and 
        imminent threat of harm to self or others; and
            ``(9) communicating to law enforcement and family members 
        or caregivers about the admission of a patient to receive care 
        at a facility or the release of a patient who was admitted to a 
        facility for an emergency psychiatric hold or involuntary 
        treatment.
    ``(b) Coordination.--The Secretary shall carry out this section in 
coordination with the Director of the Office for Civil Rights within 
the Department of Health and Human Services.
    ``(c) Consistency With Guidance.--The Secretary shall ensure that 
the regulations under this section are consistent with the guidance 
entitled `HIPAA Privacy Rule and Sharing Information Related to Mental 
Health', issued by the Department of Health and Human Services on 
February 20, 2014.''.

SEC. 3. DEVELOPMENT AND DISSEMINATION OF MODEL TRAINING PROGRAMS.

    (a) Initial Programs and Materials.--Not later than one year after 
promulgating final regulations under section 13431 of the HITECH Act, 
as added by section 2, the Secretary of Health and Human Services (in 
this section referred to as the ``Secretary'') shall develop and 
disseminate--
            (1) a model program and materials for training health care 
        providers (including physicians, emergency medical personnel, 
        psychologists, counselors, therapists, behavioral health 
        facilities and clinics, care managers, and hospitals) regarding 
        the circumstances under which, consistent with the standards 
        governing the privacy and security of individually identifiable 
        health information promulgated by the Secretary under sections 
        262(a) and 264 of the Health Insurance Portability and 
        Accountability Act of 1996, the protected health information of 
        patients with a mental illness may be disclosed with and 
        without patient consent;
            (2) a model program and materials for training lawyers and 
        others in the legal profession on such circumstances; and
            (3) a model program and materials for training patients and 
        their families regarding their rights to protect and obtain 
        information under the standards specified in paragraph (1).
    (b) Periodic Updates.--The Secretary shall--
            (1) periodically review and update the model programs and 
        materials developed under subsection (a); and
            (2) disseminate the updated model programs and materials.
    (c) Contents.--The programs and materials developed under 
subsection (a) shall address the guidance entitled ``HIPAA Privacy Rule 
and Sharing Information Related to Mental Health'', issued by the 
Department of Health and Human Services on February 20, 2014.
    (d) Coordination.--The Secretary shall carry out this section in 
coordination with the Director of the Office for Civil Rights within 
the Department of Health and Human Services, the Administrator of the 
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, the 
Administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration, and 
the heads of other relevant agencies within the Department of Health 
and Human Services.
    (e) Input of Certain Entities.--In developing the model programs 
and materials required by subsections (a) and (b), the Secretary shall 
solicit the input of relevant national, State, and local associations, 
medical societies, and licensing boards.
    (f) Funding.--There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out 
this section $5,000,000 for fiscal year 2016 and $25,000,000 for the 
period of fiscal years 2017 through 2022.