A: No.
Ask the TMA Knowledge Center Trust the answer
Q: is a physician required to release a minor’s medical record to a parent if the minor was treated for a condition, such as pregnancy, that does not require parental consent?
A. Texas Family Code 32.003 is the Texas statute dealing with a minor’s consent to medical treatment. Even though this section sometimes allows for minors to consent to their own treatment, Subsection (d) states, “A licensed physician, dentist, or psy- chologist may, with or without the consent of a child who is a patient, advise the parents, managing conservator, or guardian of the child of the treatment given to or needed by the child.” The Texas Family Code 153.073 similarly says, “Unless limited
by court order, a parent appointed as a conservator of a child has at all times the right of access to medical, dental, psycho- logical, and educational records of the child.” The fact that a minor can consent to treatment in certain
circumstances doesn’t remove the right of a parent, managing conservator, or guardian to know about the treatment. Minor patients treated for conditions that do not require pa-
rental consent should be cautioned that if their parent/guardian demands release of their medical record, the law requires the physician to release the record. A physician may deny access to a minor’s medical record if he or she believes that release of the information would be harmful to the physical, mental, or emo- tional health of the patient (Tex. Occ. Code §159.006[a]).
Note: The Texas Medical Association provides this information with the express understanding that no attorney-client relation- ship exists, neither TMA nor its attorneys are engaged in provid- ing legal advice, and the information is of a general character. This is not a substitute for the advice of an attorney. While every effort is made to ensure that content is complete, accurate, and timely, TMA cannot guarantee the accuracy and totality of the information contained in this publication and assumes no legal responsibility for loss or damages resulting from the use of this content. You should not rely on this information when dealing with personal legal matters; rather, legal advice from retained legal counsel should be sought.
12 TEXAS MEDICINE June 2013
Q: How is the 2-percent reduc- tion identified on the electronic re- mittance advice (ERA) and the standard paper remittance (SPR)? A: The Claim Adjustment Reason Code (CARC) 223 is used to report the seques- tration reduction on the ERA and SPR.
Q: What is the verbiage for CARC 223? A: “Adjustment code for mandated fed- eral, state, or local law/regulation that is not already covered by another code and is mandated before a new code can be created.”
Doom no more
TMA’s “Calendar of Doom” is now “Deadlines for Doctors: Do This Now.” It’s still loaded with the key dates you need to know to stay abreast of all the upcoming state and federal regula- tions and key health policy issues that impact you and your practice. It still has the outstanding TMA information re- sources, tools, and educational programs you need to stay in compliance. It’s still a great way for you to plan ahead for those insurance company demands and health information technology carrots and sticks.
But the TMA Council on Practice Management Services wanted to give the calendar a new name, one that wasn’t so negative and ominous. Council member Susan Blue, MD, of Fort Worth, came up with “Deadlines for Doctors.” Bookmark
www.texmed.org/dead- lines and visit regularly, or subscribe to the RSS feed at
www.texmed.org/Dead- lines/
RSS.aspx.
TMLT launches new CME site
BY LAURA HALE BROCKWAY The Texas Medical Liability Trust (TMLT) now pro- vides all continuing medical education (CME) courses through one online cata- log, available at
www.tmlt.org/cme. The new CME site offers 24-hour access to
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