Confidentiality and the Duty To Warn (From AIDS and the Health Care System, P 98-112, 1990, Lawrence O Gostin, ed. -- See NCJ-124158)

• NCJ Number: 124161
• Author(s): B M Dickens
• Date Published: 1990
• Length: 15 pages
• Sale Source: Yale University Press
• Publication Type: Legislation/Policy Analysis
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This analysis of laws and legal principles regarding health professional confidentiality and on duties and powers to warn others regarding an individual's HIV infectivity emphasizes that that the laws and principles often conflict and can be ranked only where judicial rulings exist or legislative approaches have been suggested.

Abstract

The conflict between patients' needs for confidentiality and the public need for information has existed throughout history. In addition, in both ethics and modern law many more health professionals than just physicians are bound to respect the confidentiality of others. Laws currently exist regarding protection of the confidentiality of personally identifiable results of mandatory and voluntary blood testing, reporting of AIDS cases and sometimes of positive HIV tests to public health authorities, and contact tracing. Confidential laws also relate to research to determine the prevalence of HIV infection and disclosure of confidential information in the course of legal proceedings. Judicial decisions also indicate that certain situations may make it the duty of health professionals to warn unaware potential victims of HIV infection. In addition, one decision has also asserted that health professionals in certain cases have the legal power to warn as an exception to legislation mandating confidentiality.