Opinion ID: 1155855
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Remedies for HIPAA Violations

Text: The remedies for HIPAA violations are set forth in 42 USCA § 1320d-5. That code section merely authorizes the Secretary to impose a fine not to exceed $100 for each violation. It does not authorize a remedy or penalty in the context of a civil lawsuit. In our view, the appropriate remedy to be fashioned in cases of this kind is best left to the discretion of the trial court. See generally OCGA § 9-11-37. Where, as here, defense counsel contacted plaintiff's prior treating physicians at a time when the applicability of HIPAA to ex parte communications was uncertain, a trial court would be well-advised to avoid an extreme sanction. See Law v. Zuckerman, supra at 713 (court remedied HIPAA violation by ordering that either party could speak to physician before trial and if physician strayed in his testimony from the medical records and offered any opinions beyond his experience as [p]laintiff's treating physician such testimony would be prohibited); Crenshaw, supra at 1030 (court remedied HIPAA violation by ordering defendant to produce physician for deposition at its expense and prohibiting further ex parte contacts). The remedy fashioned by the trial court in this case, permitting defense counsel to interview Mr. Moreland's prior treating physicians, but only after giving plaintiff notice and enabling her attorneys to be present when the physicians are interviewed, lies well within a trial court's discretion.