Do HIPAA privacy rules apply to all disclosures of health-related information?
The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act protects patients' health information, laying out rules that insurers, providers and certain related entities have to follow. It doesn't apply to other organizations, media or private individuals.
"Far too often, but especially in a crisis, HIPAA may be invoked to stonewall all attempts to get medical information," a South Carolina journalism professor wrote in May.
In an emergency such as the coronavirus outbreak, HIPAA rules allow sharing relevant information—such as test results—to public health authorities or individuals without a patient's authorization. Except in limited circumstances, reporting the test results of an identifiable patient to the media or public is not allowed without the patient's written permission. A patient may authorize any or all disclosures by organizations subject to the law.
