Fergie's Tech Blog

HIPAA Doesn’t Protect All Health Information, Ohio Court Rules

Nancy Harris writes on Government Health IT:

In what could be a landmark ruling, the Ohio Supreme Court has decided that the state’s open records law supersedes the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act’s privacy protections for medical records.

The decision may be the first in the country concerning a conflict between a state’s open records law and HIPAA was at issue, attorney John Greiner said. He represented the Cincinnati Enquirer newspaper in its successful suit to compel the city to release information about landlords and homeowners cited for lead paint violations.

Greiner said the ruling could affect areas beyond Ohio because many states have similar open records laws.

posted by Fergie @ 3/28/2006 11:51:00 AM