That is probably the policy of the practice you go to, and I imagine other practices might be similar. My pdoc and therapist rarely discuss me but if something came up in session that she thought my pdoc should know, she asks me first. It's not legally (or ethically) required, however. They can both read each other's notes since they're in the same file. It's like this in a hospital - the doctors out of different departments can see patient files if they need to. If a provider from another hospital wanted your records, however, they would need consent first. All of this is usually explained in any paperwork to be signed when you first begin treatment. I don't think it's always very clear, though.