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Mental Health Consumers’ rights
Mental Health Patient’s Bill of Rights
from the American Psychological Association

As a patient, you have certain rights. Some are guaranteed by federal law, such as the right to get a copy of your medical records, and the right to keep them private. Many states have additional laws protecting patients, and healthcare facilities often have a patient bill of rights.

The APA's Bill of Rights may not be upheld by law, but many providers and healthcare facilities abide by them.

Principles for the Provision of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Treatment Services

These provisions regarding privacy are only some of the guidelines of the Patient’s Bill of Rights. You’ll want to read the complete list of other rights regarding your mental health care.

The American Psychological Association’s commitment is to provide quality mental health and substance abuse services to all individuals without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, gender, age, sexual orientation, or disability

Benefits
If you have not already received information about your health plan, ask your benefits manager for a copy of your health plan benefits; you have a right to have one of your own to keep. It should describe what treatment benefits you are entitled to, how to get services and how to appeal coverage decisions you do not agree with. It should explain what your financial responsibilities are.

Confidentiality
Find out if the information to be disclosed to the payer would be anything other than diagnosis, prognosis, type of treatment, time and length of treatment, and cost. Will the organizations receiving this information keep it as confidential as the mental health professional?

If your information is transmitted, stored, or used for any purpose as data, will information that identifies you be removed to protect your privacy? Will the information be transferred to others or sold?

Individuals have the right to be guaranteed the protection of the confidentiality of their relationship with their mental health and substance abuse professional, except when laws or ethics dictate otherwise or you give your written approval. .

Individuals shall not be required to disclose confidential, privileged, or other information other than diagnosis, prognosis, type of treatment, time and length of treatment, and cost.

Insurance companies, public agencies receiving information for health care planning or any other organization with legitimate right to information will maintain clinical information in confidence and be subject to the same penalties for violation as is the direct provider of care.

Information technology will be used for transmission, storage, or data management only with in ways that remove individual identifying information and assure the protection of the individual's privacy. Information should not be transferred, sold, or otherwise utilized.

Read more about the American psychological Association’s Bill of Rights, including information about professional expertise and more.

Copies of the Bill of Rights, brochures, and posters are available from the American Psychological Association at (800) 374-2721 or through its web site.

Related articles
Crisis Planning
Privacy for mental health care
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Source
American Psychological Association 

Page updated August 1, 2009