Mississippi Administrative Code › Title 24 - Mental Health › Part 2 - Operational Standards for Mental Health, Intellectual/Developmental Disabilities, and Substance Use Community Service Providers › Chapter 16 - Service Organization › Rule 24-2-16.6 - Confidentiality

Current through June 25, 2024
A. Personnel must maintain the
				confidentiality rights of people they serve at all times across situations and
				locations, such as in waiting areas to which the public has access, while
				speaking on the telephone, or in conversing with colleagues.
B. The agency provider must have written
				policies and procedures and related documentation pertaining to the
				compilation, storage, and dissemination of people's records that assures a
				person's right to privacy and maintains the confidentiality of people's records
				and information.
C. Compilation,
				storage and dissemination of people's records, including related documentation,
				must be in accordance with these policies and procedures, which at a minimum
				must include:
1. Designated person(s) to
				distribute people's records to employees;
2. Specific procedures to assure that
				people's records are secure in all locations;
3. Procedures to limit access to people's
				records to only those who have been determined to have specific need for the
				person's record, including written documentation listing those
				people;
4. Procedures for release
				of information that are in accordance with all applicable state and federal
				laws. Generally, this means people's records and information shall not be
				released except upon prior written authorization of the person receiving
				services or his/her legally authorized representative; upon order of a court of
				competent jurisdiction; upon request by medical personnel in a medical
				emergency; or, when necessary for the continued treatment or continued benefits
				of the person. These procedures at a minimum must:
(a) Describe the process for releasing
				information about people receiving services only upon written consent,
				including the identification of the employee responsible for processing
				inquiries or requests for information regarding people receiving
				services.
(b) Describe the process
				for releasing information about a person receiving services without prior
				written consent, that is, in cases of a medical emergency or upon receipt of a
				court order.
(c) Provide that
				written consent to release information is not combined with any other consents
				or releases by the person receiving services.
5. Procedures prohibiting the disclosure that
				a person answering to a particular description, name, or other identification
				has or has not been attending the service without prior written consent of the
				person specifically authorizing such disclosure;
6. Procedures prohibiting re-disclosure of
				information obtained by the agency provider and released by the agency provider
				without specific prior written consent of the person to whom it
				pertains;
7. Procedures requiring
				written consent of the person receiving services or his/her legal
				representative(s), when appropriate, prior to disclosing identifying
				information to third-party payer; and,
8. Procedures addressing the release of
				information regarding people receiving Substance Use Services, in accordance
				with applicable federal regulations.