Sharing your child's health information with and between health providers is an important part of the medical home concept, especially when several specialists are caring for your child. With access to all information, your doctors can make the best decisions, avoid duplication of tests and services, and minimize the risks. Other providers can be sure that their services are consistent with the overall plan and can work with your medical home to make sure your child gets the best care possible.

You, as a health care consumer and a parent, have the right to control where your child’s health information goes, and the responsibility to make sure it is available to those who need it. In general, you should also try to limit access to your child's medical information to only those people who need it to provide care, to work with your providers (e.g., schools), or to provide funding/payment (e.g., insurance companies, Social Security, etc.). It is important to be careful about how the information is shared—sending records by fax or email may not be the safest way unless you are sure the fax will only be seen by the right people or that the email is appropriately encrypted. Federal legislation (HIPAA) has mandated certain protections for health information.

The Health Information Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) was established by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HSS) in 1996. This national set of privacy regulations limits the ways that health plans, pharmacies, hospitals, doctors, and other "covered entities" can use patients' personal medical information. The regulations govern sharing of any information about health status, provision of health care, or payment for health care that can be linked to an individual—"protected health information."

Listed below are some frequently asked questions about children's health care needs. Answers have been summarized from the Health and Human Services web site. For more detailed information, see Health Information Privacy (HHS) or HIPAA Frequently Asked Quesions: Personal Representatives and Minors.

How does HIPAA affect the confidentiality of my child's medical records?

Do my child's doctors need my permission to share information with each other?

Are parents entitled to copies of their child's medical records?

What happens when I sign information release forms?

Can I fax or email medical information?

What about communicating with my child's school personnel

Sharing health information with and from schools and school personnel is governed by yet another law, the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), which is even more restrictive than HIPAA. Special forms will be needed to grant school personnel permission to share information. See Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) (USDOE), the Portal's School Types and Options section, and the Medical Home - School Information Release Form ( 49 KB).

Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) (USDOE) is a Federal law that protects the privacy of public school student education records. The FERPA law does not apply to private schools. FERPA gives parents or guardians rights about their children’s education records. These rights become the student’s rights when the student:

• Turns age 18
• Starts school beyond the high school level, like college, even if the student is under age 18.

FERPA gives parents and eligible students the right to:

• Look at all the student's education records kept by the school
• Ask that the school correct records if something isn't accurate

Health Information in Education Records: HIPAA or FERPA?