(740 ILCS 110/5) (from Ch. 91 1/2, par. 805)

Sec. 5. Disclosure; consent.

(a) Except as provided in Sections 6 through 12.2 of this Act, records and communications may be disclosed to someone other than those persons listed in Section 4 of this Act only with the written consent of those persons who are entitled to inspect and copy a recipient's record pursuant to Section 4 of this Act.

(b) Every consent form shall be in writing and shall specify the following:

(1) the person or agency to whom disclosure is to be made;

(2) the purpose for which disclosure is to be made;

(3) the nature of the information to be disclosed;

(4) the right to inspect and copy the information to be disclosed;

(5) the consequences of a refusal to consent, if any; and

(6) the calendar date on which the consent expires, provided that if no calendar date is stated, information may be released only on the day the consent form is received by the therapist; and

(7) the right to revoke the consent at any time.

The consent form shall be signed by the person entitled to give consent and the signature shall be witnessed by a person who can attest to the identity of the person so entitled. A copy of the consent and a notation as to any action taken thereon shall be entered in the recipient's record. Any revocation of consent shall be in writing, signed by the person who gave the consent and the signature shall be witnessed by a person who can attest to the identity of the person so entitled. No written revocation of consent shall be effective to prevent disclosure of records and communications until it is received by the person otherwise authorized to disclose records and communications.

(c) Only information relevant to the purpose for which disclosure is sought may be disclosed. Blanket consent to the disclosure of unspecified information shall not be valid. Advance consent may be valid only if the nature of the information to be disclosed is specified in detail and the duration of the consent is indicated. Consent may be revoked in writing at any time; any such revocation shall have no effect on disclosures made prior thereto.

(d) No person or agency to whom any information is disclosed under this Section may redisclose such information unless the person who consented to the disclosure specifically consents to such redisclosure.

(e) Except as otherwise provided in this Act, records and communications shall remain confidential after the death of a recipient and shall not be disclosed unless the recipient's representative, as defined in the Probate Act of 1975 and the therapist consent to such disclosure or unless disclosure is authorized by court order after in camera examination and upon good cause shown.

(f) Paragraphs (a) through (e) of this Section shall not apply to and shall not be construed to limit insurance companies writing Life, Accident or Health insurance as defined in Section 4 of the Illinois Insurance Code in obtaining general consents for the release to them or their designated representatives of any and all confidential communications and records kept by agencies, hospitals, therapists or record custodians, and utilizing such information in connection with the underwriting of applications for coverage for such policies or contracts, or in connection with evaluating claims or liability under such policies or contracts, or coordinating benefits pursuant to policy or contract provisions.

(Source: P.A. 90-655, eff. 7-30-98)