HIPAA covers what information health care professionals can provide. It does not cover what your boss or anyone else can ask you. Some states have their own laws. In California, for example, you would be correct, but that is a state law, not HIPAA.
Requests from your employer
Your employer can ask you for a doctor’s note or other health information if they need the information for sick leave, workers’ compensation, wellness programs, or health insurance.
However, if your employer asks your health care provider directly for information about you, your provider cannot give your employer the information without your authorization unless other laws require them to do so.
Generally, the Privacy Rule applies to the disclosures made by your health care provider, not the questions your employer may ask.
What your employer can do if you refuse to answer or lie to them, I have no idea.
Basically, you don’t have to tell them, and they can only ask (or demand medical evaluation) so far as it’s a concern for doing your job- or for providing reasonable accommodation.
And no, we can’t fire you for taking a day off or calling in for a medical anything. Nor can we fire you for saying more than that.
What we can do, is keep track of every petty little thing you fuck up and fire you for stupid shit. Like you forgot to tuck your shirt in or you arrived five minutes late or whatever.
It’s dirty and it’s wrong, but it’s impossible to prove that narrative that your illness or what ever made you relapse and hurt performance.
Everyone knows it’s because you took FMLA leave, but, on paper it’s because you started showing up late again. Or whatever.
It’s depressing that the only union this doesn’t work on is cops.
This is the correct answer. Unless it’s COVID, I don’t believe they can even ask once they know it’s medical.
HIPAA
The issue is people who flip out internally and feel the need to explain themselves. Those are your feelings, not an actual rule. Stop it.
HIPAA covers what information health care professionals can provide. It does not cover what your boss or anyone else can ask you. Some states have their own laws. In California, for example, you would be correct, but that is a state law, not HIPAA.
What your employer can do if you refuse to answer or lie to them, I have no idea.
It’s ADA, not HIPAA
Basically, you don’t have to tell them, and they can only ask (or demand medical evaluation) so far as it’s a concern for doing your job- or for providing reasonable accommodation.
And no, we can’t fire you for taking a day off or calling in for a medical anything. Nor can we fire you for saying more than that.
What we can do, is keep track of every petty little thing you fuck up and fire you for stupid shit. Like you forgot to tuck your shirt in or you arrived five minutes late or whatever.
It’s dirty and it’s wrong, but it’s impossible to prove that narrative that your illness or what ever made you relapse and hurt performance.
Everyone knows it’s because you took FMLA leave, but, on paper it’s because you started showing up late again. Or whatever.
It’s depressing that the only union this doesn’t work on is cops.