Beginning in 1996, when Congress passed the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), patients in the U.S. gained the absolute right to standardized patient protections for their sensitive medical information. When a medical professional or facility mishandles patient information, it’s a HIPAA violation, which breaches the medical provider’s duty of care.
A HIPAA violation is legally actionable. Not only can you file a formal complaint, but you may also be able to recover compensation for damages, since many courts now recognize HIPAA violations as a class of medical malpractice. Reach out to an injury attorney from Smith LaCien in the event your HIPAA rights were violated when injured at the hospital.
Some HIPAA violations are egregious breaches of the law; for instance, if a medical provider includes your sensitive medical information in an online social media post or other public forum. More often, less immediately apparent violations occur that nonetheless constitute a serious breach of your rights, for example, with the following common violations:
Failing to implement adequate training and monitoring on HIPAA laws for employees may also be a HIPAA violation.
HIPAA law is more than just an additional form you must sign before your doctor’s appointment; it’s a serious protection of your legal right to privacy. Unfortunately, a single health insurance study reported that over 176 million Americans have been affected by HIPAA violations since its inception, a number widely accepted as underreported. If a medical provider, medical facility, or insurance company improperly accesses or discloses your sensitive medical information, you can file a formal complaint in writing with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Depending on the severity of the violation and clear evidence, the violator will face a substantial fine and potentially the loss of their license, or even criminal charges. You must file a HIPAA violation complaint within 180 days of the date you learned of the violation.
HIPAA serves as a crucial safeguard for patient privacy. A HIPAA violation complaint is not the same as a medical malpractice claim, and a HIPAA violation alone rarely constitutes medical malpractice, except in limited circumstances.
Although HIPAA doesn’t allow patients to file lawsuits against providers who violate their protected right to privacy, in medical malpractice claims involving patient injury, worsened medical condition, or wrongful death, proving that a HIPAA violation occurred demonstrates a breach of the medical provider’s duty of care, which may indicate substandard practice as part of a history of negligence.
If a violation of your protected privacy rights under HIPAA occurred and caused provable damages, such as financial, physical, and emotional consequences, you may have the right to compensation for those damages through a settlement or court award.
While medical malpractice claims focus on direct physical injury or worsened medical outcomes caused by a provider’s negligence, patients who’ve experienced a violation of their HIPAA protections also have legal rights. HIPAA and medical malpractice often overlap. If you have questions about your rights under Illinois medical malpractice and HIPAA law, call or contact the Chicago medical malpractice lawyers at Smith LaCien LLP online for a free evaluation of your case.
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