02/10/2021
HIPAA Law & COVID19 : WHERE IS THE BALANCE
I'm writing this post because I have been asked by several small businesses what to do to stay compliant with the HIPAA law and still notify employees.
As employers we have to abide by the HIPAA laws of our land. As employers we have a duty and obligation to keep our employees safe, healthy and informed of health risk.
But where is the balance?
If a member of your staff has received a positive COVID test an employer should and must feel an obligation to trace the exposure, contact those directly exposed individually, then follow protocol to keep everyone safe and healthy. Beyond the individual exposure disclosure a general email or memo should be sent to ALL employees letting them know there has been a reported case and if they were directly exposed they will be notified in person.
REMEMBER TO PROTECT THE INFECTED EMPLOYEE BY NOT RELEASING THEIR NAME TO ANY OTHER PERSON OR IN ANY RELATED CORRESPONDENCE.
If you have questions or would like further protocol procedures please contact me via my LinkedIn profile.