Can Someone Explain Bush's Changes To Family and Medical Leave Act

[orleans]

i'm trying to find exactly what was altered the other day

i read it goes into effect 1/19/09

"The rule change involving the 15-year-old Family and Medical Leave Act lets employers ask an employee's health-care providers to clarify information that makes a medical leave necessary. It also requires an employee who seeks medical leave to provide the same notice required for other forms of leave, when possible."

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122714583954143319.html

does this mean an employer can call your doctor and find out the exact reason you are taking a leave of absence?

example: could employer find out you are going into rehab when currently he wouldn't be able to find out?

how does this impact the hipaa laws for privacy?

on a pdf from
http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/hipaa/consumer_rights.pdf
it says: "in general, your health information cannot be given to your employer..."

david schuster mentioned this upcoming law in the "bushed" segment last night. but i am not sure of the specifics. help?

[BrklynLiberal]

1. Sure sounds like the employer can call your doctor.

It also indicates that you must give advance notice of intent to take FMLA. I do not think this was needed before.

[Gman]

2. The explanation in the article is entirely too vague

to make any kind of an educated guess. I don't see how anything can change the legal circumstances set out in the legislation that trigger FMLA. The word "clarify" could really only mean they can ask clarifying questions possibly about the length of time needed based on the health care provider's opinion. But it is a real stretch to even consider a company asking for clarifying information on a sick mother, father or child when an FMLA request is received. But then, there's no limit to how low a company will stoop.

[orleans]

4. it is terribly vague. i've been googling and can't find

anything more specific--and i'm thinking this would override whatever is in hipaa regarding medical privacy

[Edweird]

3. I haven't read it, don't know anything about, only that if * was involved

it's bad for you.

[Frank Cannon]

7. I have found that rule of thumb to work 100% of the time

Even when you hear a news report indicating that the Chimp might have done something good, when you research it, you find that it's another screw-over. Every single time.

[orleans]

5. evening kick. anyone? n/t

[Cleita]

6. I've been so busy educating people on Single Payer Universal Health

Care and fielding health care trolls, I haven't had time. There is so much to do.

[Horse with no Name]

8. I have intermittent FMLA because of a medical problem

and the best I can determine after talking to our benefits representative is that EVERY SINGLE TIME I am sick, I have to have a note from the Doctor explaining WHY I was out of work.
FMLA is granted for very specific reasons of which the employer is already aware of when you fill out the initial paperwork. They are just going to make you verify that it isn't being abused.(This rules out the HIPAA argument).
I don't agree with this, btw, because when I was very sick last year, my doctor had to fill out the FMLA paperwork THREE times when I wasn't ready to go back to work on the estimated dates, I had to have notes each week on TOP of this AND then I ALSO had to have my short term disability paperwork filled out by him. I felt like I was being a HUGE pain in the ass to his office by all of the paperwork that I had to have and now I am overjoyed that I will now have to ask him to do more.:sarcasm:
My guess? They are trying to discourage Docs from filling out the initial paperwork so that fewer people will use what is granted to them by the laws by overloading them with ridiculous amounts of paperwork and the constant justification that a patient is REALLY ill.