General Rule
Borders continued
Wait a minute – I thought we were all part of one big Department? Back in 2004, when the old Department of Behavioral and Developmental Services (BDS) and the old Department of Human Services (DHS) were merged, many people thought the barriers to sharing information would go away. However, for the most part, the statutes and regulations that define the boundaries around confidential information did not change. So, yes, we’re a bigger department but we still have to pay attention to confidentiality protections. And, as we said at the beginning, that’s a good thing. Protecting privacy is as much a part of our mission as integrating services.
That’s not to say the merger hasn’t made it easier to share information. Not at all. As one Department, we have the chance to create better pathways for sharing information and better systems for making sure we’re sharing information legally.