Author on Fox News: Obama's Grandmother Said Barack was born in Mombasa, Kenya

Youtube ^ | NOVEMBER 28, 2010 | cnin242

[sometime lurker]

You are confusing common sense with what the law says. HIPAA does not permit release of any information, including the fact that someone was a patient. Read the law, under "what information is protected" and you'll see:

“Individually identifiable health information” is information, including demographic data, that relates to:

• the individual’s past, present or future physical or mental health or condition,
• the provision of health care to the individual, or
• the past, present, or future payment for the provision of health care to the individual

Further, a patient may only be included in a directory if they have had a chance to opt out. If the patient opts out, the hospital may not confirm the patient is in the hospital. Directory information is obviously not pertinent to a patient from 40 years ago.

Common sense may say that the fact someone was in a hospital is not protected information, but the HIPAA law clearly says otherwise.