Skip to main content


U.S. flag
      An official website of the United States government
              Here’s how you know
        Here’s how you knowDot gov**Official websites use .gov**
                 A **.gov** website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.
                  HTTPS**Secure .gov websites use HTTPS**
                 A **lock** (A locked padlock) or **https://** means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites. 
  Menu Close
          Enter the terms you wish to search for.
    Search
        








  
  
    

  
      

                                      About HHS
    
                        
                              
      
      
      Programs & Services
    
                        
                              
      
      
      Grants & Contracts
    
                        
                              
      
      
      Laws & Regulations                  
Health Information Privacy
  HIPAA for Individuals
    
                        
                                            
      
      
      Filing a Complaint
    
                        
                                            
      
      
      HIPAA for Professionals
    
                        
                                            
      
      
      Newsroom

              

    



Breadcrumb
    HHS
                              HIPAA Home
                              For Professionals
                              Privacy
                              Guidance Materials
                              Understanding Some of HIPAA’s Permitted Uses and Disclosures


    

    

    Navigate to:
  HIPAA for Professionals
    
                                    
                                            
            
      
      
      
      Regulatory Initiatives
    
                                                  
                                                                  
            
      
      
      
      Privacy
                                            
            
            Summary of the Privacy Rule
    
                                                  
                                            
            
      
      
      
      Guidance
    
                                                  
                                            
            
      
      
      
      Combined Text of All Rules
    
                                                  
                                            
            
      
      
      
      HIPAA Related Links
    
                                                  
                                                                  
            
      
      
      
      Security
                                            
            
            Summary of the Security Rule
    
                                                  
                                            
            
      
      
      
      Security Guidance
    
                                                  
                                            
            
      
      
      
      Cyber Security Guidance
    
                                                  
                                                                  
            
      
      
      
      Breach Notification
                                            
            
            Breach Reporting
    
                                                  
                                            
            
      
      
      
      Guidance
    
                                                  
                                            
            
      
      
      
      Reports to Congress
    
                                                  
                                            
            
      
      
      
      Regulation History
    
                                                  
                                                                  
            
      
      
      
      Compliance & Enforcement
                                            
            
            Enforcement Rule
    
                                                  
                                            
            
      
      
      
      Enforcement Process
    
                                                  
                                            
            
      
      
      
      Enforcement Data
    
                                                  
                                            
            
      
      
      
      Resolution Agreements
    
                                                  
                                            
            
      
      
      
      Case Examples
    
                                                  
                                            
            
      
      
      
      Audit
    
                                                  
                                            
            
      
      
      
      Reports to Congress
    
                                                  
                                            
            
      
      
      
      State Attorneys General
    
                                                  
                                                                  
            
      
      
      
      Special Topics
                                            
            
            HIPAA and Part 2
    
                                                  
                                            
            
      
      
      
      Change Healthcare Cybersecurity Incident FAQs
    
                                                  
                                            
            
      
      
      
      HIPAA and COVID-19
    
                                                                
                                                                  
            
      
      
      
      HIPAA and Reproductive Health
                          
            
            HIPAA and Final Rule Notice
    
                                                  
                                            
            
      
      
      
      HIPAA and Telehealth
    
                                                  
                                            
            
      
      
      
      HIPAA and FERPA
    
                                                  
                                            
            
      
      
      
      Research
    
                                                  
                                            
            
      
      
      
      Public Health
    
                                                  
                                            
            
      
      
      
      Emergency Response
    
                                                  
                                            
            
      
      
      
      Health Information Technology
    
                                                  
                                            
            
      
      
      
      Health Apps
    
                                                  
                                                                  
            
      
      
      
      Patient Safety
                                            
            
            Statute & Rule
                          
            
            PSQIA Statute
    
                                                  
                                            
            
      
      
      
      Patient Safety Rule
    
                                                  
                                            
            
      
      
      
      Enforcement
    
                                                  
                                            
            
      
      
      
      Guidance
    
                                                  
                                                                  
            
      
      
      
      Covered Entities & Business Associates
                                            
            
            Business Associate Contracts
    
                                                  
                                            
            
      
      
      
      Business Associates
    
                                    
                                            
            
      
      
      
      Training & Resources
    
                                    
                                            
            
      
      
      
      FAQs for Professionals
    
                                    
                                            
            
      
      
      
      Other Administrative Simplification RulesText resize icon

                    




Understanding Some of HIPAA’s Permitted Uses and Disclosures








  
  
    

  
      



Information is essential fuel for the engine of health care.  Physicians, medical professionals, hospitals and other clinical institutions generate, use and share it to provide good care to individuals, to evaluate the quality of care they are providing, and to assure they receive proper payment from health plans.  Health plans generate, use and share it to pay for care, to assure care for their members is well coordinated and that populations of individuals with chronic conditions are receiving appropriate care.   The capability for relevant players in the health care system – including the patient – to be able to quickly and easily access needed information to make decisions, and to provide the right care at the right time, is fundamental to achieving the goals of health reform.
The Privacy, Security, and Breach Notification Rules under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) were intended to support information sharing by providing assurance to the public that sensitive health data would be maintained securely and shared only for appropriate purposes or with express authorization of the individual.   For more than a decade, the HIPAA regulations have provided a strong privacy and security foundation for the health care system.
Although the regulations have been in effect for quite some time, health care providers frequently still question whether the sharing of health information, even for routine purposes like treatment or care coordination, is permissible under HIPAA.  Confusion about the rules has been cited by many as a potential obstacle to interoperability of digital health information.
To address this confusion, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT (ONC) and the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) have worked collaboratively to develop a series of topical fact sheets on HIPAA Permitted Uses and Disclosures that provide examples of when PHI can be exchanged under HIPAA without first requiring a specific authorization from the patient, so long as other protections or conditions are met.
One fact sheet addresses Permitted Uses and Disclosures for Health Care Operations, and clarifies that an entity covered by HIPAA (“covered entity”), such as a physician or hospital, can disclose identifiable health information (referred to in HIPAA as protected health information or PHI) to another covered entity (or a contractor (i.e., “business associate”) working for that covered entity), for activities that fall within HIPAA’s definition of “health care operations.”  The fact sheet includes illustrations of how HIPAA supports sharing of PHI by providers to enable case management by a health plan; for quality assessment and/or quality improvement; and for population health.  The other fact sheet, Permitted Uses and Disclosures: Exchange for Treatment, illustrates how HIPAA supports sharing of PHI between and among health care providers in order to treat or coordinate care for their patients.
Both fact sheets also provide information on what health care providers should do to help assure that sharing PHI for either treatment or operations is in compliance with the HIPAA Privacy and Security Rules.
As a reminder, permitted uses and disclosures must be addressed in a covered entity’s Notice of Privacy Practices.  HHS offers model notices of privacy practices for both health care providers and health plans.  These model notices are available for free download, in English and in Spanish, at http://www.hhs.gov/hipaa/for-professionals/privacy/guidance/model-notices-privacy-practices
It is our hope that the fact sheets will be helpful tools that help clarify HIPAA and support the goals of interoperability of health information.
Read the fact sheets
Permitted Uses and Disclosures for Health Care Operations (PDF)
	Permitted Uses and Disclosures: Exchange for Treatment (PDF)

                    
  


Content created by Office for Civil Rights (OCR) Content last reviewed February 12, 2016Back to top
    Contact HHS
    
                        
                                            
      
      
      Careers
    
                        
                                            
      
      
      HHS FAQs
    
                        
                                            
      
      
      Nondiscrimination NoticeHHS Archive
    
                        
                                            
      
      
      Accessibility Statement
    
                        
                                            
      
      
      Privacy Policy
    
                        
                                            
      
      
      Viewers & PlayersBudget/Performance
    
                        
                                            
      
      
      Inspector General
    
                        
                                            
      
      
      Web Site Disclaimers
    
                        
                                            
      
      
      EEO/No Fear ActFOIA
    
                        
                                            
      
      
      The White House
    
                        
                                            
      
      
      USA.gov
    
                        
                                            
      
      
      Vulnerability Disclosure Policy
        Sign Up for Email Updates

Receive the latest updates from the Secretary, Blogs, and News Releases.

Sign Up
  HHS Headquarters
          200 Independence Avenue, S.W.
                  Washington, D.C. 20201
                  Toll Free Call Center: 1-877-696-6775​