Healthcare Provider Criminally Indicted for Violating HIPAA
Contributed by Paul J. Welk
412.594.5536
Dr. Richard Allen Kaye, the Medical Director of Sentara Obisi Hospital, in Suffolk, VA was indicted by a federal grand jury for disclosing patient identifiable information in violation of the HIPAA Privacy Rule. The indictment accuses Dr. Kaye of disclosing patient information without authorization to an agent of the patient’s employer. Specifically, the US Attorney’s news release indicates that the alleged unauthorized disclosures were made under the false pretenses that the patient was a serious and imminent threat to the safety of the public, when in fact Dr. Kaye knew that the patient was not such a threat.
