Informed consent is necessary in Medicaid Planning. The State of Florida Department of Children and Families, Department of Elder Affairs requires an assessment for all those applying for or receiving assistance for long term care (LTC). This includes the Institutional Care Program (ICP). Every individual who applies for the program must give his or her consent to this assessment.
Informed Consent
Generally, informed consent means that the person who is to undergo a medical procedure or, in this case an assessment, has been given an explanation and understands the risks of the outcome.
Florida’s general informed consent law requires that for a patient to give valid, informed consent to any medical treatment, the health care professional must conform to “an accepted standard of medical practice among members of the medical profession” and provide information the details the following:
- the nature of the procedure;
- the medically acceptable alternatives to the procedure; and
- the procedure’s substantial risks.
To evaluate a senior’s needs for eligibility for the Institutional Care Program, they must sign an informed consent form.
Granting Permission to the Agency
By signing Form 2040, the applicant is specifically giving the agency permission to the following:
- An assessment to identify the individual’s need for long term care and to determine if his or her needs can be satisfied in the community or in a nursing facility; and
- Access to the person’s medical records by DC&F and DOEA staff. This also means that they have permission to speak to the individual’s doctor and other health professionals, as well as family members, close friends, and social services professionals about the person’s situation.
The information DC&F requests is used to determine eligibility for health coverage, to ascertain the patient’s state of disability, and to carry out treatment, payment, or health care operations.
The informed consent is time-limited and is valid for only a specific period of time. The patient has the right to revoke or cancel the authorization at any time.
Unable to Give Informed Consent
If a person can’t provide informed consent due to incapacity, the hospital or doctor will consult with his or her health care surrogate or agent who’s been entrusted to make the decisions on behalf of the incapacitated person.
It’s important to sign a healthcare power of attorney to designate a trusted person to act on your behalf if you’re incapacitated and can’t give your informed consent. Without this document, the State of Florida provides a list of individuals who can make decisions for you: your guardian is first, then, your health care surrogate, your spouse, then your children, your parents, and then siblings.
Questions about Informed Consent and Medicaid Forms?
If you have questions about informed consent or Florida Medicaid assessments, contact attorney John Frazier, a skilled Medicaid planning (with over 2,000 cases completed that helped preserve their family’s savings), estate planning and elder law practitioner. Please contact John for a free telephone consultation at 727-586-3306 extension 104. If you prefer click here now to send in a contact form, and we will call you.