Schwip said:

Tell your friend to NOT tell court appointed doctors or counselors ANYTHING.

Play the role of the innocent.

Drugs? Nah it was a foolish little bit of experimenting that got me caught.

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Never tell any medical professional anything, and this includes your own personal physician. Never tell them anything that even remotely seems illegal, or that might somehow bring you legal troubles in the future.

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Seuss said:

You must establish a doctor-patient relationship in order to be protected. This requires that you voluntarily seek advice or treatment from the doctor, and that you have an expectation that the communication will be held in confidence.

Doctor visits at the request of a 3rd party, such as a court order or insurance physical, are NOT protected. Speaking to a doctor "outside if the office", such as at a party or through email is also not protected.

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In the United States, the extent of the privilege varies depending on the law of the applicable state. For example, in Texas there is only a limited physician-patient privilege in criminal proceedings, and the privilege is limited in civil cases as well. See generally Texas Occupations Code section 159.003 and Texas Rules of Evidence, Rule 509(b).

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Key Points

* There is no duty of confidentiality owed unless a bona-fide doctor-patient relationship exists or existed
* The scope of the duty of doctor-patient confidentiality, as well as the existence of a doctor-patient legal privilege, varies from state to state. No federal law governs doctor-patient confidentiality or privilege
* Generally, what is confidential is information that is learned or gained by a doctor, during or as a result of the doctor's communications with examination of you, or medical assessment of the patient
* The duty of confidentiality continues even after the patient stops seeing or being treated by the doctor
* The duty of confidentiality is not absolute. Doctors may divulge or disclose personal information, against the patient's will, under very limited circumstances

The Doctor-Patient Relationship

There must be a bona fide "doctor-patient relationship" between individuals and a physician before any duty of confidentiality is created. Generally speaking, individuals must voluntarily seek advice or treatment from the doctor, and have an expectation that the communication will be held in confidence. This expectation of confidentiality does not need to be expressed. It is implied from the circumstances.

If individuals meet a doctor at a party, and in the course of "small-talk"conversation, they ask the doctor for an opinion regarding a medical question that relates to them, the doctor's advice would most likely not be considered confidential, nor would the doctor be considered "the individuals doctor." Likewise, if individuals send an e-mail to an "Ask the Doctor" website on the Internet, the communication would not be considered confidential, nor would the person who responded to the e-mail be considered he sender's doctor. No doctor-patient relationship was established, and no duty is owed.

If individuals are examined by a physician at the request of a third party (such as an insurance company or their employer), no matter how thorough or extensive the examination, or how friendly the doctor, there is generally no physician-patient relationship and no duty of confidentiality is owed to the patients. This is because they did not seek the physician's advice or treatment, and the relationship is at "arm's-length."

In many states, the privilege is limited to professional relationships between licensed doctors of medicine and their patients. Other states extend the privilege to chiropractors, psychologists, therapists, etc.

Doctor-Patient Privilege

Once a bona-fide doctor-patient relationship is established, the duty of confidentiality"attaches," and in many states, the doctor can invoke a legal privilege, on the patient's behalf, when asked to disclose or divulge information the doctor may have or know about the patient.

Federal Rule of Evidence (FRE) 501 provides that any permissible privilege "shall be governed by the principles of common law" as interpreted by federal courts. However, in civil actions governed by state law, the privilege of a witness is also determined by the laws of that state. Most states recognize some form of doctor-patient privilege by express law (STATUTE), but over time, there have been many exceptions that have chipped away the use or scope of the privilege.

In recent years, many courts have held that doctors also owe duties to protect non-patients who may be harmed by patients. For example, without a patient's permission or knowledge, doctors may warn others or the police if the patient is mentally unstable, potentially violent, or has threatened a specific person. In some states, the duty to report or warn others "trumps" the right to confidentiality or privileged communication with a doctor. Courts will decide these matters by balancing the sanctity of the confidentiality against the foreseeability of harm to a third party.

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JackTackle said:

the counselor gave him a test
he said he was "just barely" positive for pot

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