I work for a state agency and had to go to the doctor due to abdominal pains I was then given a note that just stated I was under the doctors care for 3 days after which I could return to work. The human resources dept told me that this was unacceptable that I would need to get the doctor to put medical facts concerning why I was out of work. Is this a violation of hippa act?

Yes, that would be a violation of HIPAA, not hippa, if the doctor were to do so. Your employer is only required to have a written excuse as to how long you are to be out and whether you can return to work with restrictions, and what kind of restrictions.

I disagree. I don't believe the HIPAA regulations restrict an employer from requiring information from the doctor. They only restrict the doctor from giving that information without the employee's consent.

But I could be wrong. If so, J_9, please cite chapter and verse.

That's exactly what I said. The employer can request, but the doctor cannot reveal. The employer can request until the cows come home, but if the employee does not sign a release for the doctor to forward that information, then no information can be forwarded. To do so, without a written Release of Medical Information by the employee would constitute a HIPAA violation.

On a side note... During my cancer, the law firm I worked for requested protected medical information from my doctor. I was then educated on HIPAA from my doctor, not the law firm I worked for. Kind of a role reversal, but it has stuck with me ever since. Oh, and I am educated on HIPAA yearly now as I am now in the medical, not legal profession.

Guess I have the best of both worlds.

I will give you another example.

I see patients in a hospital 4-5 nights a week. Sometimes I work in Labor and Delivery, others I work in the ER. Many people ask me for a work excuse. I am allowed, by HIPAA, to provide that. However, the note reads the following... "Mr/Mrs Jones was seen at (name your facility) and treated. He/She is excused from work (on whatever date seen) and is permitted to return to work on (whatever date permitted). Anything mentioning ANY diagnosis or treatment is strictly prohibited in that Return to Work notice.

On a side note... During my cancer, the law firm I worked for requested protected medical information from my doctor. I was then educated on HIPAA from my doctor, not the law firm I worked for. Kind of a role reversal, but it has stuck with me ever since. Oh, and I am educated on HIPAA yearly now as I am now in the medical, not legal profession.

Guess I have the best of both worlds.

I agree that the law firm should have seen the HIPAA problem coming down the road, and asked you to sign a release, directing the doctor to give the information to the law firm. That would have solved the problem, IMO.

The lawyers should have known this. How HIPAA works is not rocket science. :)

I think what's being lost in the shuffle is that the employer can make it a requirement of going back to work (or even of continuing to work there) that the medical information be divulged.

Many employees seem to think that their medical condition is by law not required to be revealed to an employer. Not true at all.

Just as an extreme example, your abdominal pain could be a highly contagious tropical parasite. The fact that it wasn't is irrelevant. The employer has a right to know if you are a hazard in the workplace. And it isn't just contagion; it can be risk of injury to yourself, such as seizures. There are many situations.

To summarize, it is NOT a HIPAA violation for the employer to ask for the information. And I agree with Joy that the employer can require more information, but the doctor cannot reveal anything without your permission.

So how does one solve that dilemma? The employer needs to define WHY they want more info. There could be good reason, like for example contagion. The doctor could then satisfy the employer's needs by stating that you aren't contagious without revealing the exact nature of your illness.

Are you requesting paid time off ? What is the companies written policy for time off ?
A company may ask for this, a doctor can not provide it without your permission.

It is not a violation to ask for the information.