If they don't take insurance (EDIT: insurance or medicare), they don't need to be HIPAA compliant.

EDIT: This is advice my HealthTech startup received from a very well respected lawfirm. It's not as black and white as this. However, it is a good rule of thumb.

HIPPA isn’t only about insurance. If they collect any personal health information (which, by the very nature of their product, I’m sure they do) they need to be compliant.

No, they don't. Although it's not about insurance either. Here is a list of who is covered: https://www.hhs.gov/hipaa/for-professionals/covered-entities...

Note that a random app that gets "medical data" is not covered unless it counts as a health care provider AND transmits data in certain HHS electronic formats.

That's not true.

They only need to be HIPAA compliant if they're a covered entity and dealing with an HHS related transaction.

https://www.hhs.gov/hipaa/for-professionals/covered-entities...

> A Health Care Provider .... ...but only if they transmit any information in an electronic form in connection with a transaction for which HHS has adopted a standard.

What makes you think that or are you joking?

I have received this advice from several well respected lawyers and read the law myself.

Very interesting. I guess it shows you always have to read stuff yourself before believing anything . Does this mean that if you run a site where people enter their health data you are not really bound by HIPPA? Makes me wonder about something like Apple Health? Are they bound by it when they receive data or only when they pass it somewhere else?

Not looking for legal advice. Just curious. In my company our lawyers tell us what to do anyway.

>Are they bound by it when they receive data or only when they pass it somewhere else?

Neither based on my knowledge. They can do whatever they want with the data and give to whomever they want with no restrictions from HIPAA.

edit: Note that their privacy policy may provide protections and the government may get angry with certain sharing but only if it's politically useful (ie: tinder, hiv status and china).

Not true at all

>I'm not sure how they are able to get away with this without violating HIPAA though.

The same way every health app out there does it. By not having medical professionals involved, not transmitting data in standard electronic medical formats and not getting data already classified under HIPAA. Without those you're no longer a covered entity or business associate under HIPAA so you can do whatever you want.

Contrary to belief, HIPAA is not about medical data as a whole.