On January 4, the Department of Health and Human Services
("DHHS") issued a final rule modifying HIPAA's Privacy Rule
to expressly permit certain covered entities to disclose to the
National Instant Criminal Background Check System
("NICS") the identities of individuals who, for specific
mental health reasons, are prohibited by federal law from having a
firearm. This permission does not apply to most treating providers
but applies to only a small subset of covered entities that: (i)
make the mental health determinations that disqualify individuals
from having a firearm; or (ii) are designated by their respective
states to report such information to NICS. This rule permits a
covered entity to report only limited identifying, nondiagnostic,
and nonclinical information to the NICS.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
