Q. What if an attorney sends me a release of information form with a client’s signature requesting “all medical records”?
A. 1) Determine that the signature is from your client.
2) If you kept separate psychotherapy notes, be advised that you must have a separate release form that specifically identifies that “psychotherapy notes” are to be released. Under HIPAA, you cannot release psychotherapy notes without a separate release form. If possible, contact your client and be sure that they understand that by releasing records to the attorney, you can no longer assure the privacy of the records
3) If appropriate, suggest writing a summary of the treatment, rather than giving out the whole record.