"Last year, someone from my current employer's Benefits team went out on maternity leave, and I was asked to temporarily help their department. During that time, I became aware of an employee who was fundraising at their location to help cover the cost of medical bills for a treatment they were receiving. I was also aware that this employee did NOT have the condition they claimed to have, nor were they receiving any kind of treatment, but I had this knowledge due to my access to information through the Benefits department. That knowledge was protected by HIPAA, and I could not say anything. This tested my ethics because I wanted to let the General Manager and the employees at that location know she was lying, but I couldn't violate HIPAA. I brought the situation to the attention of the Director of Benefits since she was within the HIPAA-protected circle, and she confirmed that we couldn't say anything. We were, however, able to put a new policy in place to prohibit fundraising for individuals. During this experience, I learned what it feels like to have your ethics tested and the necessity of finding a creative solution within legal AND ethical bounds."
