Scenario: You have a patient who is not capable of signing his/her patient report.

Referring to your Required Signature Matrix (available as a PDF on the ePCR Toughbook!), you’ll see that you need four signatures and one is from the patient for HIPAA Release and Authorization for Billing.

How can a patient who is not capable of signing actually sign the report, then? (S)he cannot. The signature, then, falls on you to do with the status of Not Signed (Reason). Why does this make sense? Does this mean you are accepting responsibility for billing?

The short answer is no.

The longer answer, courtesy of EMS-Ops, is this: This is all done under implied consent.  The authorization to treat and release for billing can be completed by the provider when the patient cannot offer informed consent, based on the patient’s medical needs.  It is the same authorization we get to do the actual treatment and share patient information with the hospital.