DataBreaches.Net

Menu
  • About
  • Breach Notification Laws
  • Privacy Policy
  • Transparency Report
Menu

NY's highest court rules HIPAA trumps Kendra's law

Posted on May 11, 2011 by Dissent

Alison Frankel of Reuters reports:

U.S. privacy laws bar release of a mental health patient’s records as part of an effort to compel outpatient treatment unless the disclosure is authorized by the patient or a court, the New York Court of Appeals ruled on Tuesday.

It was the first time a state’s highest court had ruled on the scope of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability (HIPAA) Act’s privacy provisions in an involuntary mental health treatment proceeding, said the patient’s lawyers, Scott M. Wells and Dennis Feld of the New York Mental Hygiene Legal Services.

The ruling was In the Matter of Miguel M. The New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene sought in 2007 to compel Miguel M. to receive mental health treatment under Kendra’s Law, a 1999 New York statute that permits public officials to demand outpatient treatment orders for mental health patients who have been hospitalized after failing to comply with treatment plans.

At the Supreme Court hearing on Miguel M.’s treatment order, counsel for the city asked to introduce into evidence records of the patient’s two recent hospitalizations for schizoaffective disorder. Although the city conceded that the records had been obtained without the patient’s consent or a court order, it argued that the disclosure was permissible under Kendra’s Law.

Miguel M.’s counsel opposed the introduction of his hospital records, citing HIPAA’s privacy strictures. After briefing on the question, the trial court admitted the records, finding that HIPAA permits the disclosure under a provision authorizing public health officials to collect information in order to prevent disease or injury or to conduct a public health investigation or intervention. An intermediate appellate court upheld the ruling.

But in Tuesday’s decision, the Court of Appeals found that neither of those exceptions to HIPAA’s presumption of privacy apply in this case.

Read more on Reuters.

I’m really pleased to see this decision.

Category: Uncategorized

Post navigation

← Man who solicited patient records from University Medical Center of Southern Nevada employee sentenced to prison
(follow-up) Romanian national sentenced in PNC skimming case →

Now more than ever

"Stand with Ukraine:" above raised hands. The illustration is in blue and yellow, the colors of Ukraine's flag.

Search

Browse by Categories

Recent Posts

  • Why Dumping Sensitive Data on Network Shares is a Liability
  • A militarily degraded Iran may turn to asymmetrical warfare – raising risk of proxy and cyber attacks
  • Pro-Russian hackers disrupt Dutch government websites ahead of NATO summit
  • Iran-Linked Threat Actors Leak Visitors and Athletes’ Data from Saudi Games
  • UK: Oxford City Council still investigating cyberattack from earlier this month
  • Steelmaker Nucor Says Hackers Stole Data in Recent Attack
  • People’s Republic of China cyber threat activity: Cyber Threat Bulletin
  • Ukrainian Web3 security auditing company Hacken suffered an attack that allowed a hacker to create 900 million HAI tokens
  • McLaren provides written notice to 743,131 patients after ransomware attack in July 2024 (2)
  • A state forensics lab was leaking its files. Getting it locked down involved a number of people.

No, You Can’t Buy a Post or an Interview

This site does not accept sponsored posts or link-back arrangements. Inquiries about either are ignored.

And despite what some trolls may try to claim: DataBreaches has never accepted even one dime to interview or report on anyone. Nor will DataBreaches ever pay anyone for data or to interview them.

Want to Get Our RSS Feed?

Grab it here:

https://databreaches.net/feed/

RSS Recent Posts on PogoWasRight.org

  • Sky Views Personal Data as a Potential Weapon in IPTV Piracy War
  • Florida Used a Nationwide Surveillance Camera Network 250 Times To Aid in Immigration Arrests
  • Federal Court Strikes Down HIPAA Reproductive Health Care Privacy Rule
  • The Markup caught 4 more states sharing personal health data with Big Tech
  • Privacy in the Big Sky State: Montana’s Consumer Privacy Law Gets Amended
  • UK Passes Data Use and Access Regulation Bill
  • Officials defend Liberal bill that would force hospitals, banks, hotels to hand over data

Have a News Tip?

Email: Tips[at]DataBreaches.net

Signal: +1 516-776-7756

Contact Me

Email: info[at]databreaches.net

Mastodon: Infosec.Exchange/@PogoWasRight

Signal: +1 516-776-7756

DMCA Concern: dmca[at]databreaches.net
© 2009 – 2025 DataBreaches.net and DataBreaches LLC. All rights reserved.