[Med-privacy] SSNs

[pmarshall]

Social Security Numbers

The healthcare industry, particularly health plans, must now deal more
cautiously with the use of Social Security numbers on members'
identification cards. HIPAA currently does not specify what can or
cannot be used for patient identification. However, several states, like

California and Florida, are limiting the use of Social Security numbers
by non-governmental organizations. This means that a health plan
currently using the patient's Social Security number as the personal
identifier may be forced to change its policy and completely reorganize
its records.

[HIPAAlert]