Stacey Caldwell v. Honorable A.c. McKay Chauvin, Judge, Jefferson Circuit Court, and Dr. Frank P. Castro, D/b/a Palo…

Summary

The Kentucky Supreme Court affirmed the denial of Caldwell's petition for a writ of prohibition. It held that Kentucky law permits counsel to request voluntary ex parte interviews with a plaintiff's nonexpert treating physicians, but HIPAA regulates any disclosure of protected health information during those interviews and requires prior court authorization. Because the challenged order expressly withheld authorization to disclose protected health information and any disclosure was therefore only speculative, extraordinary relief was unwarranted. Keller, J., joined by Barber and Noble, JJ., concurred in the result but would adopt a general physician-patient privilege.