Who does HIPAA not apply to?

Asked by: Prof. Reuben Smitham  |  Last update: August 23, 2025
Score: 4.2/5 (25 votes)

Generally, public schools, colleges, and other educational institutions that provide medical services for students and staff (as a work benefit) are not considered to be covered entities under HIPAA.

Who is not required to follow HIPAA?

Examples of organizations that do not have to follow the Privacy and Security Rules include: Life insurers. Employers. Workers compensation carriers.

Does HIPAA apply to everyone?

HIPAA's privacy rule applies to healthcare providers, healthcare plans, and healthcare clearinghouses that transmit health information through any type of communication method. Put simply, this means it applies to anyone who has access to, needs to use, or needs to disclose private health information (PHI).

Which of the following does HIPAA not apply to?

Educational Records: Records covered by the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) are exempt from HIPAA. This includes educational records like grades and transcripts that are directly related to a student and maintained by an educational institution or party acting on its behalf.

Who does not follow HIPAA?

Those that do not qualify as a covered entity are not required to comply with HIPAA unless they provide a service for a covered entity as a business associate.

Who does HIPAA not apply to and why?

20 related questions found

Who is HIPAA exempt?

Generally, public schools, colleges, and other educational institutions that provide medical services for students and staff (as a work benefit) are not considered to be covered entities under HIPAA.

Who does HIPAA restrict?

Who must comply with the HIPAA Privacy Rule? HIPAA applies to health plans, health care clearinghouses, and those health care providers that conduct certain health care transactions electronically (e.g., billing a health plan). These are known as covered entities.

What are the three exceptions to HIPAA?

The Three Exceptions to a HIPAA Breach
  • Unintentional Acquisition, Access, or Use. ...
  • Inadvertent Disclosure to an Authorized Person. ...
  • Inability to Retain PHI.

What isn't protected by HIPAA?

HIPAA-covered entities include health insurers, healthcare providers (doctors, hospitals, pharmacies) and “business associates,” such as vendors used by hospitals. What's not subject to HIPAA may surprise you, including pharmaceutical companies, employers and universities.

Which of the following entities are not covered by HIPAA?

Non-covered entities, not bound by the Privacy Rule, can include wearable tech, health apps, or providers not dealing with electronic data. It's essential to determine your classification to ensure compliance and avoid penalties under HIPAA.

Who can override HIPAA?

State privacy law supersedes HIPAA when a state law provides greater privacy protections for individually identifiable health information than HIPAA or when a state law provides individuals with more privacy rights than HIPAA.

Does HIPAA apply to all employees?

HIPAA applies only to “covered entities,” which are defined as: (1) health plans; (2) healthcare clearinghouses; and (3) healthcare providers that electronically transmit certain health information (and certain “business associates” of covered entities).

Who should not have access to employee medical records?

Any records covered by HIPAA are not to be shared with anyone unless you have the employee's permission. For instance, if you uncover that an employee has sleep apnea by reading the quarterly report from your company's medical program, it must remain confidential under HIPAA.

Is everyone bound by HIPAA?

HIPAA is not only for healthcare providers but also does not apply to everyone. The list below shows the entities that do not need to follow HIPAA. However, these entities should still follow state and federal laws concerning data privacy. Municipal offices and state agencies not involved in healthcare services.

Can I sue my doctor for not releasing my medical records?

If you believe that your doctor or other health care provider violated your health information privacy right by not giving you access to your medical record, you may file a HIPAA Privacy Rule Complaint with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office for Civil Rights.

Which organization does not need to comply with HIPAA?

State agencies like child protective services and law enforcement agencies also fall outside of HIPAA's scope because their primary functions do not involve the electronic transmission of health information for transactions covered by HIPAA.

Who is exempt from HIPAA privacy rule?

General rule exceptions

State law preempts HIPAA in these situations: State law has more stringent patients' rights or privacy provisions than HIPAA. State law provides for reporting information to public health agencies. State law requires a health plan to report information for the purpose of audits, etc.

Does HIPAA apply to regular citizens?

HIPAA applies to everyone as individuals inasmuch as everyone has personally identifiable health information that they have the right to inspect and request corrections when errors or omissions exist. HIPAA can also apply to certain types of organization depending on which section of HIPAA you review.

What is not subject to HIPAA?

Examples of research using only RHI and thus not subject to HIPAA include: use of aggregated (non-individual) data; diagnostic tests from which results are not entered into the medical record and are not disclosed to the subject; and testing conducted without any PHI identifiers.

Who is not covered by the privacy rule in HIPAA?

Who is not covered by the HIPAA Privacy Rule? Any organization that does not qualify as a covered entity or that does not provide a service for or on behalf of a covered entity as a business associate is not covered by the HIPAA Privacy Rule.

What qualifies as a HIPAA violation?

HIPAA violations occur when an organization runs afoul of the standards defined by this 1996 U.S. Federal legislation. Many HIPAA violations are related to accessing or sharing patients' protected health information (PHI). However, violations can also include items such as not training staff or monitoring access logs.

What information Cannot be released under HIPAA?

Health, treatment, or payment information, and any identifiers maintained with this information, is considered Protected Health Information under HIPAA if the information is created, received, maintained, or transmitted by a “covered entity” or by a “business associate”.

Who does not have to abide by Hippa?

If an entity does not meet the definition of a covered entity or business associate, it does not have to comply with the HIPAA Rules.

What can override HIPAA?

In contrast to State laws that authorize higher or different fees than are permitted under HIPAA, HIPAA does not override those State laws that provide individuals with greater rights of access to their health information than the HIPAA Privacy Rule does. See 45 CFR 160.202 and 160.203.

What is a qualifying event for HIPAA?

Qualifying life event (QLE)
  • Loss of health coverage. Losing existing health coverage, including job-based, individual, and student plans. ...
  • Changes in household. Getting married or divorced. ...
  • Changes in residence. Moving to a different ZIP code or county. ...
  • Other qualifying events.