American Health Law Association’s Health Law Weekly, “The Long Arm of the Law: HIPAA’s Protections in the Face of Criminal Investigations,” by Abbye Alexander, Esq., Christopher Tellner, Esq. and Henry Norwood, Esq., 12-5-2025

Kaufman Dolowich’s Abbye Alexander and Christopher Tellner, Co-Chairs of the Healthcare/Managed Care Practice Group, and Henry Norwood, San Francisco Of Counsel, with contributions from Elizabeth Ortega Cardenas, a legal clerk in KD’s San Francisco office, authored an insightful article addressing what healthcare providers need to know about when entities subject to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) may disclose protected health information (PHI) to law enforcement in connection with an ongoing investigation.

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) safeguards protected health information (PHI) from disclosure by covered entities without a patient’s consent. The protections of HIPAA, however, are not absolute, and there are exceptions to the restriction on disclosure of PHI. An important question arises as to whether covered entities may disclose PHI to law enforcement to aid in an ongoing criminal investigation. Health care providers may have critical knowledge relevant to criminal investigations in the course of providing care to victims or suspects of criminal misconduct and may subsequently face the difficult question of whether to disclose PHI when requested by law enforcement. Fortunately, the HIPAA regulations do provide for the circumstances under which covered entities may disclose PHI to law enforcement, which should be understood by all providers, patients, law enforcement, and legal counsel to ensure compliance.

For the full article click here. AHLA Weekly – 120525 – Long Arm – Norwood – Tellner – Alexander

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