Westbury Medical Care, P.C. v. Lumbermans Mutual Insurance
The plaintiff, a health service provider, sought payment for medical services rendered to assignor Elaine McKeithan after an automobile accident, from the defendant, Lumbermans Mutual Insurance Company. The defendant denied the claim citing non-compliance with fee schedules and concurrent care. The defendant moved for a protective order to prevent the plaintiff from accessing its entire no-fault file, arguing that it contained protected health information under HIPAA. The court partially granted the defendant's motion, ruling that the plaintiff could only access documents specifically related to the alleged concurrent treatment, not the entire file, due to HIPAA's patient privacy regulations and the absence of a valid HIPAA authorization from the claimant. The court emphasized the need to balance full disclosure under CPLR with HIPAA's privacy protections.