Iowa Administrative Code › Agency 17 - Aging, Department On › Chapter 22 - Office of Public Guardian › Rule 17-22.10 - Confidentiality

Current through Register Vol. 47, No. 3, July 24, 2024
Notwithstanding Iowa Code chapter 22, the following provisions
				shall apply to records obtained by public guardians in the course of their
				duties.
(1) Records or information
			 obtained for use by a public guardian is confidential. All records or
			 information obtained from federal, state or local agencies and health or mental
			 care service providers shall be managed by the state and local offices with the
			 same degree of confidentiality required by law or the policy utilized by the
			 entity having control of such records or information. Such records or
			 information shall not be disseminated without written permission from the
			 entity having control of such records or information.
(2) In its sole discretion, the state or
			 local office may disclose a record obtained in the performance of its duties if
			 release of the record is necessary and in the best interest of the consumer.
			 Disclosure of a record under this rule does not affect the confidential nature
			 of the record.
(3) Information may
			 be redacted so that personally identifiable information is kept
			 confidential.
(4) Confidential
			 information may be disclosed to employees and agents of the department as
			 needed for the performance of their duties. The state office shall determine
			 what constitutes legitimate need to use confidential records. Individuals
			 affected by this rule may include paid staff and volunteers working under the
			 direction of the department and commission members.
(5) Information concerning program
			 expenditures and client eligibility may be released to staff of the state
			 executive and legislative branches who are responsible for ensuring that public
			 funds have been managed correctly. This same information may also be released
			 to auditors from federal agencies when those agencies provide program
			 funds.
(6) The state office or a
			 local office may enter into contracts or agreements with public or private
			 entities in order to carry out the state or local office's official duties.
			 Information necessary to carry out these duties may be shared with these
			 entities. The state or local office may disclose protected health information
			 to an entity under contract and may allow an entity to create or receive
			 protected health information on the state or local office's behalf if the state
			 or local office obtains satisfactory assurance that the entity will
			 appropriately safeguard the information.
(7) Release for judicial and administrative
			 proceedings.
a. Information shall be released
			 to the court as required by law.
b.
			 The state or local office shall disclose protected health information in the
			 course of any judicial or administrative proceeding in response to an order of
			 a court or administrative tribunal. The state or local office shall disclose
			 only the protected health information expressly authorized by the order and
			 when the court makes the order knowing that the information is
			 confidential.
c. If a court
			 subpoenas other information that the state or local office is prohibited from
			 releasing, the state or local office shall advise the court of the statutory
			 and regulatory provisions against disclosure of the information and shall
			 disclose the information only on order of the court.