Have we become immune to requests for our signatures? We sign for credit card receipts, for deliveries, and on and on. How many times have you signed a medical release without giving a thought to just what you are signing? You sign them for your doctor visit, for lab studies, for diagnostic procedures and for surgery. Do you fully read what the release says or do you accept the clerk's casual statement that you are giving them permission to go directly to you health insurance carrier for payment? Most of the time it is not a problem. But what assurance do you have that someone else, other than your insurance carrier, won't ask for records for other purposes? To the medical office the request may seem acceptable and they send your records without your knowledge.
You need to be a thoughtful and careful consumer. Be sure to take the time to read and understand what you are signing. Is it an open-ended request or is it very specific? You may want to qualify and/or limit your release of information. Recently on such questionable releases I added a statement as the following:Limited to information necessary for approval or payment for this procedure only. Any other requests must be brought to my attention prior to release information.You should initial your statement and have the representative initial it also. In addition, get a copy of the document for your records.
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