You are a CMA working in the office of a physician who performs major surgical procedures on hospitalized patients. A patient, who is the father of a...

You are a CMA working in the office of a physician who performs major surgical procedures on hospitalized patients.  A patient, who is the father of a friend of yours, comes in for pre-surgery exam.  You happen to know that this man is an alcoholic.  You also know that the surgeon you work for does not like to perform surgery on alcoholic patients as he believes they have difficulty healing and often have excessive bleeding after surgery.  You wish to tell the surgeon about the man’s drinking problem, but you are afraid that it would be a HIPAA violation.

What do you do? 

Is this a legal and/or ethical problem? 

Should you discuss your concerns with your friend (the daughter of the patient)? 

What is your first responsibility?