we are looking for someone. We believe he is in a homeless shelter. When we call shelters we ask if he is there. they all say “we can’t give out that type of information” but all ask if we want to leave a message incase he is there. So I give his name and the message. Some simply say “ok, thank you” and that ends the call. Others say “There is no one here by that name, in the database”. This leads me to assume that they can’t tell us if someone is there but they can tell us if someone is not there. Is this correct?
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It is not HIPPA rules that apply, but other concerns. eg. Some people are in shelters because of abuse at home and are being protected.
HIPAA can apply to homeless shelters. For example, when they have an entity that is covered by HIPAA, such as a clinic, in the facility, the shelter is held by the same standards of privacy. Even if that weren’t the case, I am guessing staff and clients have gone over confidentiality policies. As you can gather, if a person does go to the shelter and does take messages, the person will get the message; if not, then nothing happens. Shelters operate differently and and have different policies, so it’s hard to generalize. Even though some shelters have told you that person is not there, the best practice is actually to not give you any information and simply take a message.