Not HiPaa. Sorry. right to privacy.
The fundamental right to privacy, guaranteed by the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution, protects against unwarranted invasions of privacy by federal or state entities, or arms thereof. As early as Roe v. Wade, 410 U.S. 113 (1973), the U.S. Supreme Court acknowledged that the doctor-patient relationship is one which evokes constitutional rights of privacy. Because the Supreme Court has found that a fundamental right of privacy exists as to medical information about a person, private causes of action (against defendants other than federal or state entities) also exist for alleged violations of privacy rights (e.g., “invasion of privacy”). This right would extend to the privacy of any medical information contained in medical records.