Is This Ethical/Against HIPPA Laws?

[axeman462]

Last night I had an appointment down the street from another client of mine, and I had mentioned to the prospect that I have a client in the neighborhood. She got a little excited to hear that, and asked who, and what policy he went with?
At this point I had realized that I was about to disclose one of my client's name, and what policy he went with without his information.

I ended telling her that I wasn't 100% sure about what HIPPA laws say about this, and I didn't feel comfortable disclosing that information. She understood completely.

I'm sure I am not the only one to come across this scenario. I was wondering what the laws are about this, and if, in yall's opinion if it would be a breach of trust to tell a prospect that another client's name is a customer of mine, and what policy they went with (but being careful not to disclose any other personal information ie: RX, income etc..)

 

[goillini52]

Last night I had an appointment down the street from another client of mine, and I had mentioned to the prospect that I have a client in the neighborhood. She got a little excited to hear that, and asked who, and what policy he went with?
At this point I had realized that I was about to disclose one of my client's name, and what policy he went with without his information.

I ended telling her that I wasn't 100% sure about what HIPPA laws say about this, and I didn't feel comfortable disclosing that information. She understood completely.

I'm sure I am not the only one to come across this scenario. I was wondering what the laws are about this, and if, in yall's opinion if it would be a breach of trust to tell a prospect that another client's name is a customer of mine, and what policy they went with (but being careful not to disclose any other personal information ie: RX, income etc..)

You should never use a customer's name without their approval, regardless of what HIPPA says.

 

[F150]

even if it was legal to say the clients name, you probally won some kudo's points with the new client for not saying the name, tells them, you wont say their name.....

Sometimes its not all about what the law says, its about COMMON SENSE.

 

[unic.consulting]

Last night I had an appointment down the street from another client of mine, and I had mentioned to the prospect that I have a client in the neighborhood. She got a little excited to hear that, and asked who, and what policy he went with?
At this point I had realized that I was about to disclose one of my client's name, and what policy he went with without his information.

I ended telling her that I wasn't 100% sure about what HIPPA laws say about this, and I didn't feel comfortable disclosing that information. She understood completely.

I'm sure I am not the only one to come across this scenario. I was wondering what the laws are about this, and if, in yall's opinion if it would be a breach of trust to tell a prospect that another client's name is a customer of mine, and what policy they went with (but being careful not to disclose any other personal information ie: RX, income etc..)

Legally, you would have been okay letting her know who else had a policy through you since you weren't sharing any health information. However, I agree that it's better not to discuss clients with each other at all.

___________________________________________________________

Actually, I'm just working on my ethics CE right now...

Confidentiality
The sales professional has a duty of confidentiality that he or she owes to the prospect, client, employer and business associates. The sales of many financial and other important products require that the sales person gain a thorough understanding of the prospect’s situation. This understanding normally requires that the sales professional obtain information concerning the prospect’s:

finances, including assets and liabilities
medical history
attitudes about money and risk
taxes
personal situation, including children, spouses and employment, and
other personal data, including special needs of the prospect and his or her family members

The professional is under an ethical—and, sometimes, legal—duty to keep this information concerning the prospect’s personal situation confidential. The professional may not ethically disclose any personally identifiable information that relates to a client or prospect unless authorized by the prospect or client or the disclosure is:

required to transact the business authorized by the prospect or client;
legally required—in response to a subpoena, for example; or
required in order for the professional to maintain a defense against charges of malpractice or other wrongdoing.

 

[DHK]

Remember: How you treat your current client information in front of prospective clients... is how they think you'll treat THEIR information.

Unless you have a kind of written testimonial... I wouldn't disclose any client information by name.

You can reference a client case study 'anonymously' by talking about their situation and what they decided to do... but never give identifying information.