HIPAA Journal reports the Vermont Supreme Court has ruled that a patient can pursue legal action against a hospital and one of its employees for privacy violations. A female patient was allowed to bring forward a case regarding the improper disclosure of her health information by her health care provider despite the lack of a private cause of action in Vermont law or the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. The court ultimately decided that the disclosure fell under a noted exception to the HIPAA Privacy Rule and sided with the defendant, but allowing the case to be heard might set a new standard for legal action against providers for privacy violations, according to the report.
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