HIPAA violation and child custody

[Zigner]

Under the North Dakota Health Information Protection law, it seems to be disclosure that is the problem (a Class A misdemeanor).

Yes, I see what you mean by additional issues that may arise.

There can be several legitimate reasons for accessing records without patient authorization.

I should have included the word "improperly" in my prior post. "Improperly accessing the records..."

 

[quincy]

Yes, I see what you mean by additional issues that may arise.

I should have included the word "improperly" in my prior post. "Improperly accessing the records..."

That works.

I agree with you that getting caught improperly accessing patient records is probably going to get the nurse in trouble with her employer whether she does anything with the patient information or not.

 

[Longsally1112]

This reminds of the Jussie Smollett event. Over 45 nurses "peeked" at his medical record after he got into trouble, some didn't even open them up but just looked up his name to see if he had ever been seen at the hospital. They were all fired!!!!! Electronic Medical records (EMR's) leave a "signature" and you can get caught just by checking the name of someone. Of course, I get calls from people needing work notes etc and even though I am not "involved" in their care, I can access and then leave a note why I was in the record. If a family member that is not a parent and does not have legal custody accessed a record, they can be fired and sued....

 

[Zigner]

This reminds of the Jussie Smollett event. Over 45 nurses "peeked" at his medical record after he got into trouble, some didn't even open them up but just looked up his name to see if he had ever been seen at the hospital. They were all fired!!!!!

Interesting - I did not know that.

 

[quincy]

This reminds of the Jussie Smollett event. Over 45 nurses "peeked" at his medical record after he got into trouble, some didn't even open them up but just looked up his name to see if he had ever been seen at the hospital. They were all fired!!!!! Electronic Medical records (EMR's) leave a "signature" and you can get caught just by checking the name of someone. Of course, I get calls from people needing work notes etc and even though I am not "involved" in their care, I can access and then leave a note why I was in the record. If a family member that is not a parent and does not have legal custody accessed a record, they can be fired and sued....

Celebrities are especially vulnerable to medical record breaches.

 

[commentator]

Having worked in a place where we had access to just about everybody's income (which incidentally is one of the reasons why civil servants need to be paid better) it was actually a fireable offense if a person was caught looking up anybody for any reason other than what was necessary for work. But considering the sheer volume of people who were being looked up by the average employee in a day, you had fair odds of not being caught if you didn't otherwise attract attention and get them looking at you too closely.. However, if it ever became an issue, as in IF they ever decided to check and noticed that Eddie Vetter (actual incident) probably hadn't filed a claim for unemployment lately, or if there was a complaint about your bragging about and/or misusing your information access in any way, you were outta there (with no unemployment! ) I can see where this mother in law could very well be found out and terminated for gaining access to her ex son in law or daughter in law's medical records.

However I am confused as what would such information do that would benefit the custody case for one side or another? If the other party has a drug problem, that's going to come up anyhow, If they have a mental health issue, that's going to come out. I don't see quite how medical information could be obtained from these records that would not be something that was already known.

 

[quincy]

Having worked in a place where we had access to just about everybody's income (which incidentally is one of the reasons why civil servants need to be paid better) it was actually a fireable offense if a person was caught looking up anybody for any reason other than what was necessary for work. But considering the sheer volume of people who were being looked up by the average employee in a day, you had fair odds of not being caught if you didn't otherwise attract attention and get them looking at you too closely.. However, if it ever became an issue, as in IF they ever decided to check and noticed that Eddie Vetter (actual incident) probably hadn't filed a claim for unemployment lately, or if there was a complaint about your bragging about and/or misusing your information access in any way, you were outta there (with no unemployment! ) I can see where this mother in law could very well be found out and terminated for gaining access to her ex son in law or daughter in law's medical records.

However I am confused as what would such information do that would benefit the custody case for one side or another? If the other party has a drug problem, that's going to come up anyhow, If they have a mental health issue, that's going to come out. I don't see quite how medical information could be obtained from these records that would not be something that was already known.

That's just it - you would risk your job and gain no benefit. There is no good reason for accessing and disclosing someone's private medical information.

 

[Taxing Matters]

Having worked in a place where we had access to just about everybody's income (which incidentally is one of the reasons why civil servants need to be paid better) it was actually a fireable offense if a person was caught looking up anybody for any reason other than what was necessary for work.

I worked at IRS for a few years. Employee access to taxpayer information files is strictly based on need to perform the employee's work. Employees may not even look up their own records using their internal computer access; they must use the same channels that the general public uses for that. Federal law provides that IRS employees who look up taxpayer information without authorization are subject not just to termination but to criminal prosecution as well. That is distinct from the penalties that apply for improper disclosure of taxpayer information.

Those with access to sensitive personal information of others, especially financial and medical information, need to take care not to access or disclose it improperly. It can result in a lot of negative consequences for both the person who made the improper access and the person whose information was accessed.

 

[LdiJ]

I disagree (kind of). Accessing the records can cause repercussions just as much as improperly utilizing the information. Of course, as I was trying to convey above, if one takes a peek and doesn't do anything with the information, then the chances of being caught are much slimmer, but once caught, improperly accessing the records can, in many cases, have just as severe consequences.

I agree with what you are saying from an employment standpoint...in other words, if improperly accessing records you could get yourself fired. I do not however see any legal repercussions unless you illegally use the information you accessed.

 

[quincy]

I agree with what you are saying from an employment standpoint...in other words, if improperly accessing records you could get yourself fired. I do not however see any legal repercussions unless you illegally use the information you accessed.

Job termination is what one risks if caught accessing medical records without authorization - and there are criminal penalties for unauthorized access and then disclosure of what has been accessed.

But this is based on what has been described here. There can be criminal penalties for other types of unauthorized access.