On the recordJune 11, 2015
As part of my 3-year investigation into the Nation's mental health system, I have been meeting with families and caregivers of those with mental illness. Their number one concern is the HIPAA privacy rule. Since its inception in 2002, the rule has generated nearly 70,000 complaints. Families are locked out from helping in treatment by Federal regulations that don't understand the complexity of treating a serious mental illness in someone who has other medical problems, like diabetes or lung disease or skin problems or other illnesses that require treatment. When you have those with the diminished capacity to follow through on their own care, should we just let them languish and suffer? Should we let their mental illness and poor medical care become what some consider to be a slow-motion suicide? If a family member has a head injury or a stroke or Alzheimer's illness, a doctor would not hesitate to explain the medical concerns to a family member. A doctor would do this because the doctor recognizes the brain illness can make the individual unable to clearly understand the severity of his illness. According to the current HIPAA laws, when a child is in severe psychosis, the doctor is unable to tell the parents anything. We must recognize that severe mental illness like schizophrenia, bipolar, and severe depression is brain disease--it is not an attitude.…
