Spring 2025
Professor(s):
Michael Ewer (OTHER FACULTY)
Credits: 2
Course Areas: Health Law
Time: INTERSESSION Intersession Week Location: 311
Course Outline: This course is designed to help you understand the HIPAA Privacy Rule, and will look at the requirements of covered entities, business associates, and subcontractors. The course is open to all JD and LL.M students, and while recommended it is not required. The course will start with an overview of the HIPAA rule, and students will achieve an understanding of who is and who is not a covered entity, what constitutes protected health information, and how protected health information can and cannot be used or disclosed within the rule. The course will look beyond the rights of individuals to explore the public policy exceptions within the rule, and will look at when protected health information may be used or disclosed without specific permission, when oral permission to disclose limited information is sufficient, and when written disclosure is required. Limitations to disclosure for marketing and fundraising purposes will be discussed, as will specific requirements for psychotherapy notes. Notification requirements with regard to breaches and complaints as well as other administrative requirements will also be discussed. The course will consist of 15 sections; some but not all may be covered in a single session.
1) Introduction, overview, and covered entities
2) Protected health information
3) Uses and disclosures for treatment, payment, or operations
4) Uses and disclosures allowed under public policy
5) Disclosures for which oral permission is allowed
6) Uses and disclosures for which written authorization is required
7) Special considerations for disclosures of heightened protections
8) Uses and disclosures related to fundraising
9) Special considerations for research disclosures not requiring authorization
10) Business Associates and Business Associate agreements
11) Miscellaneous issues
12) Individual rights
13) Compliance and enforcement
14) Organizational issues
15) Preemption
The course will use handout material and linked references; students will be required to prepare the assigned readings. A number of relevant cases will be discussed as time permits. A midterm written examination will be given, and we will discuss whether or not that should count toward the final grade on the first day of class. There will be a two-hour written final examination that will have both multiple-choice questions and an essay. Class participation and level of preparation may be counted toward the final grade. Attendance as required per University of Houston Law Center standards, and attendance will be recorded. The use of personal computers in class is restricted to activity related to this class; violations will be noted.
Office hours are before each of the class sessions in the Health Law & Policy Institute library, or by arrangement.
Course Syllabus:
Course Notes: (Face-to-Face) The UH registration system instruction mode for this course is listed in parenthesis. For this instruction mode, instructors and students are expected to normally be physically present in the classroom. If the course has a final examination, it will be in a classroom requiring your physical presence. Other assessment, such as a mid-term exam, may also be in a classroom. Whether this instructor will offer “remote presence” (starting a zoom meeting from the podium computer to enable student remote access on an occasional basis) for part or all of the semester is not known, but students should not rely on an expectation that remote presence will be available.
This class will meet on January 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 2025 from 9 AM - 12:00 PM and 1-2:50 PM with 10 minute break each day. The final exam will be on Saturday January 11, 2025 at 9 AM.
Prerequisites:
First Day Assignments:
Final Exam Schedule: 01/11/20259-11am
This course will have:
Exam:
Paper:
Satisfies Senior Upper Level Writing Requirement: No
Experiential Course Type: No
Bar Course: No
DistanceEd ABA: No
Pass-Fail Student Election: Unavailable (Instructor Preference)
Course Materials
No book required for this course
Material will be provided online to students.
