medical information/privacy

sjb1023 · June 2002

[font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON 06-14-02 AT 01:27PM (CST)[/font][p]it is common practice in my organization for employees to bring doctors' notes for absences to their supervisors. Some of these may contain diagnoses. This information is kept in supervisor files and I'm certain, is discussed amongst different people. I have heard that at times, this information may be used to make exceptions to our attendance policies. (If one illness/incident is more severe, an exception my be granted and the absence waived.)

In most organizations where i have worked, we have told our employees only to bring in a statement that states the employee was unable to work. (no diagnosis)

I know there are privacy issues as well as other legal ramifications. can someone point me to specific laws to reference before I address this.

thank you

Don D · June 2002

If the employee is turning in the doctor's note, where's the confidentiality issue? He's giving his own information to the company to allow the company to administer one or more of its policies. Now, if the employer is RELEASING the information to OTHER parties without the consent of the employee (which is doubtful), there may be a breech of confidence. Everybody who works in human resources knows there are many instances which require that we have such information from a doctor in order to administer a variety of programs. We can't excuse absences unless they are excusable under our policies and they generally aren't excusable unless there's a dianosis on the paperwork.

Catherine · June 2002

My biggest concern about this would be the possibility of the employee claiming that they were treated differently because they were regarded as having a disability, which leads you to the ADA.

I agree with DonD that HR may have reasons to need such information, but I believe it should be maintained in HR and not by your supervisors. If HR needs medical information, such as for FMLA verification, I have always felt that it is better for that communication to be between HR and the employee.

Don D · June 2002

I agree Catherine. Ya'll have a good weekend! DonD

Hatchetman · June 2002

Check your state laws. For example, in California, the empllyer may not required the diagnosis if the emplyee is seeking medical leave under CFRA (the sate's equivalent to FMLA). Of course FMLA allows it. And in California, the emplyer can require a disagnosis if the medicla leave doesn't fall under CFRA or even FMLA. Obviously, it gets confusing.

As far as I am concerned, as long as the employee's supevisor and manager can keep medical information about a subordinate confidential then there is no reason for HR to have it; the superivsor or manager can have it, in most cases. It's the supervisor or manager who is going to determine whether or not to approve an absence, not HR. If HR received required documentation that I needed as an employee's supervisor to make a decision, and HR was telling me I couldn't have it but to make my decision anyway, there aren't enough four letter words that I could use to make my point to HR that it now how the responsibility to deal with the employee not me!

Also, check your state's laws if medical information can be kept with an employee's personnel records, or if it needs to be kept in separate, locked files.

Margaret Morford · June 2002

Medical information of any kind, including doctor's notes, FMLA paperwork, etc. should be kept in a separate locked file. I recommend that HR keep those files and that they be in a separate file cabinet from the personnel files, with access limited to the head of HR and the benefits person. We are going to see more and more lawsuits on rights of privacy and who had access to this information. You want to be able to testify under oath as to how you kept this information confidential and how limited the access was to it.

Margaret Morford
theHRedge
615-371-8200
[email]mmorford@mleesmith.com[/email]
[url]http://www.thehredge.net[/url]

njjel · June 2002

I concur with MM above. Otherwise why was it established that medical records/information is to be kept separate from the personnel records? In all of my previous places of employments (as well as my current one) all personnel information and medical information is maintained by the HR department. In my current position, HR supports 5 different locations and all medical notes are forwarded to HR. Hope this helps.

Don D · June 2002

I've never known of a situation where the supervisor or manager is the 'record keeper' of anything medical related. Also, I've never known of a situation where supervisory personnel have enough knowledge of employment law to be able to tiptoe through the minefield. That's HR's function as I see it, not a supervisor's. Has nothing to do with trusting or not trusting the chain of command. The LAST thing we want is a drawer full of medical documents in a supervisor's office or in a manager's record box sitting over in the archives, labeled "medical excuses, 1999." I think we should all be strong proponents of mandating that those come to HR and be controlled properly there according to law. Luckily, where I work, since HR is responsible for knowing the proper procedures for such things, we also receive, file and maintain the confidentiality of any such record, and we also make the determination as to excused absenses based on those documents.

tfevergrn · June 2002

You may want to check out the new privacy regulations to be enforced by HIPPA and Gtamm-Leach-Bliley in April of 2003. I only have a brief understanding of what will be expected, but from what I see the expectations will be a royal pain to implement.

[url]http://www.hhs.gov/topics/privacy.html[/url]

[url]http://www.ftc.gov/privacy/glbact/[/url]

[url]http://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2002pres/20020321.html[/url]

[url]http://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2002pres/20020321a.html[/url]

[url]http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/hipaa/bkgrnd.html[/url]

medical information/privacy

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