QuestionMy adult daughter, a resident in my home and driving an auto I own, was involved in an auto accident. The person in the other car was given a ticket for an improper turn. My daughter was taken to the hospital by EMS, had a CT scan and a MRI and was diagnosed with minor juries and referred to her primary care physician for follow up. She does not own an auto or have any type of insurance that would cover her, except for Medicare which may or may not cover her injuries. My insurance is primary and the only auto/liability insurance.
She has been hassled by the other person's insurance company and now to a lesser degree by my insurance company to sign Hipaa permission for them to collect ALL information about her medical background, employment history, credit score, former addresses, etc. - her complete life history. Further, they say they can use the information they receive in any manner they wish, to include passing it on to a company associated with them in another type of business or with anyone else they choose to share it with. Included in papers from both companies is permission for independent investigation companies to collect all this information.
My daughter refuses to sign giving this broad permission. She is agreeable to sign giving permission for hospital and doctor visits pertaining ONLY to the auto accident. Nothing else.
I have spoken at great length with my insurance company and they say they must know ALL her medical history to determine if previous or existing conditions and medications she is taking could have contributed to the accident. Remember....my daughter was not ticketed as the other party was deemed to be at fault and her insurance company has accepted 100% responsibility, yet my company still wants all this information. My company is involved only because of possible partial reimbursement of medical expenses under the PIP provision of my Texas policy ($5,000 limit, which will not cover the expenses). I think it curious that although their liability limit is $5,000, they still want ALL her history.
I do not want to get into an even bigger hassle with my company because it has very deep pockets and I do not. And I do not want to hire a lawyer to go against the other company to stop their demands for records. We are looking only for reimbursement.....not a large or small settlement after a length court fight with the lawyer getting his 33% or 50%. We just want to put it all behind us and go on with our normal lives as they were before the other driver broke the law and caused the accident.
I am estimating medical expenses to be in the $10,000 to $12,000 range and my auto repair has been estimated at less than $2,000.
Can you suggest an easy way out of this while also getting the medical expenses paid? I am caught in the middle between insurance companies and my daughter. Is she within her rights to refuse to release any information except medical records pertinent to the auto accident?
Thank you very much in advance for your help.
Sincerely,
Ann
AnswerHi Ann,
This is the typical procedure for insurance companies. Thay want all of the information so they can see it thee is any reason to deny or reduce the claim.
The only way to potentially limit the scope of their inquiry is to hire an attoenry who will put together a demand letter and will include copies of the medical records related to the accident. But even then the insurance company may demand the rest of the information. This process could go on for several months or even a couple of years.
You should contact an attorney just to consult to see if there is anything else that can be done. You may find that hireing an attorney is simply the only way to protect your daughters rights.
I hope this helps
Richard Hixenbaugh
