Veterans who take advantage of expanded opportunities to access community health care through the VA will see a change next year in how their medical records are shared.
Beginning Jan. 1, 2020, VA no longer will require veterans to authorize sharing such records with other providers. The move from an “opt-in” to an “opt-out” system, which was announced in a Sept. 30 news release, is part of the 2018 MISSION Act, which included several VA care reforms.
Veterans who don’t want VA to share such information can submit VA Form 10-10164 (PDF) and return it to the Release of Information Office at a VA medical facility; the form cannot be submitted online, according to the news release.
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Veterans who already have opted out of sharing their information may need to do so again, depending on their earlier paperwork. Per the release:
- Veterans who have opted out of sharing via VA Form 10-0484 do not need to update their preference.
- Veterans who have restricted what information VA can share via VA Form 10-0525 will need to opt out using Form 10-10164, linked above.
For more information on the Veterans Health Information Exchange – the platform used to share beneficiaries’ medical information – visit the VA’s website.
