Very soon, patients across the country will be allowed to call the lab and get their test results, without having to interact with a physician or health care professional.
A final rule issued Feb. 3 by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services eliminates exceptions under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA) that allowed labs to withhold information from patients and their personal representatives.
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The U.S. Department of Health & Human Services will allow patients to call the lab directly for their test results without having to interact with a health care professional.
"Information like lab results can empower patients to track their health progress, make decisions with their health care professionals, and adhere to important treatment plans," HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said in a statement.
The rule supersedes state laws that prohibit patients from getting results directly from a lab. Currently, 13 states require labs to give results only to health care providers. Seven states, Puerto Rico, and the District of Columbia allow results to be given to patients, and seven allow this with the provider’s approval. The remainder have no laws governing the communication of test results.
Patients can still get their test results from their physicians – and that’s a situation many physicians prefer, Dr. Reid Blackwelder, president of the American Academy of Family Physicians, said in an interview.
"Patients have a right to [access] their records and notes," Dr. Blackwelder said. But since physicians treat patients, not numbers, there’s a need to explain why tests are being done, and to put the results into context, he said. "If you just have numbers out there without that context, it can create anxiety."
The HHS originally proposed the change in 2011. At the time, the American Medical Association, the American College of Physicians, and the American Academy of Pediatrics submitted comments to the agency asking that lab results given out directly should also tell patients to consult the ordering physicians for interpretation.
The final rule notes that labs will not be required to interpret the results and that they are given 30 days to respond to an individual’s request. With that time frame, physicians might get the results before patients do, and could provide context, according to the rule.
The rule goes into effect April 4.
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