May 6, 2020 5:00 pm Health Policy HHS OCR Issues Reminder About Media and Protected Health Information The HHS Office of Civil Rights yesterday issued guidance for covered health providers reminding them that, even during the COVID-19 public health emergency, they are still required to obtain valid prior authorization under HIPAA when media and film crews have access to facilities where patients’ protected health information is accessible. The guidance is available here. News & Knowledge All Curi recommendations are based on current CDC criteria at the time of publication. CDC guidance for SARS-CoV-2 infection may, or may not, be adopted by state and local health departments to respond to rapidly changing local circumstances. Providers should always check with their local health department to see if the CDC’s guidance on any given topic has been modified (particularly if more restrictive) from the CDC’s recommended guidelines. Follow this link https://www.cdc.gov/publichealthgateway/healthdirectories/index.html for contact information to your state/local health department. If local recommendations vary from those of the CDC, and you are unsure what recommendations to follow, then it is safer to follow the more restrictive guidelines/recommendations.