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Parents in California are furious at the local school district – but school board officials insist they were merely following federal HIPAA regulations.

 

Surprised parents in Vacaville were caught off guard when their youngsters reported that last year’s female music teacher was now a “mister.” The teacher is undergoing transgender surgery, and reported to Foxboro Elementary school as a man at the beginning of the school year.

 

Angry taxpayers lodged complaints with the Travis Unified School District, saying that they should have been warned ahead of time, so that they could discuss this issue with their children. Instead, the parents say they were blindsided when their children returned from school the first week.

 

“All the information came straight from our kids and didn’t come from the school board or the teachers…this has all been second-hand information,” Melissa Oiland said. Oiland’s child attends Foxboro Elementary.

 

The school board insists that they are merely following federal HIPAA regulations, on the advice of their attorney. While the school board was aware of the female teacher’s gender reassignment, that is private health information under HIPAA.

 

The federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act or HIPAA prohibits medical providers from sharing a patient’s private health information in many cases. The law also applies to insurance providers, and to third-party administrators. Self-insured employers are almost always considered third-party administrators under the law. Some attorneys argue that other employers should not be covered under HIPAA. However, most employers err on the side of caution, keeping any employee medical information discovered private. Apparently the Travis Unified School District is in that group.

 

“We have a legal obligation as an employer to keep employee medical information private,” Superintendent Kate Wren Gavlak says.

 

California law prohibits discrimination against employees based on sexual orientation, including protections for transgendered individuals. The law is enforced by the Department of Fair Employment and Housing. The federal ADA or Americans with Disabilities Act also prohibits discrimination based on a perceived disability, and protects the privacy of employee’s medical information.

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