Treatment Abuse, Behavior Modification, Thought Reform > Aspen Education Group
Long-Term Outcome Studies
Ursus:
--- Quote from: "Guest" ---
--- Quote from: "Guest" ---Here's a quote from the link you provided, Whooter:
--- Quote from: "The Judge in the Aspen Case" ---There is evidence that NorthStar employees went through HIPAA training and took HIPAA quizzes prior to the disclosure at issue. Rose Aff., ¶ 4. This suggests the possibility that NorthStar may be a covered entity within the meaning of HIPAA.
--- End quote ---
Northstar gave HIPAA training to all of it's unlicensed therapy providers. They must think they are a covered entity. The court will decide this. HIPAA has nothing to do with individuals, only the facility.
--- End quote ---
One may think that and many would agree with you, but here is what the court says:
The court agrees with defendants (Aspen Education Group) that Harless's alleged disclosure of Matthew Pence's confessions to police was not an extreme transgression of the bounds of socially tolerable conduct. Matthew Pence's IIED claim therefore fails as a matter of law.[/i]
Court Records
--- End quote ---
Again, you quoted discussion pertinent to only one of the claims, intimating that it applied to all, and ignored that the court was unable to reach a finding on three out of the five claims. These three were:
III. Third Claim - Negligent Provision of Mental Health Tx
IV. Fourth Claim - Breach of Confidential Relationship
V. Fifth Claim - Punitive Damages[/list]
The HIPAA issues were pertinent to the 4th claim, not the 2nd as you attempt to imply.
Pence v. Aspen Education Group, Inc.
Anonymous:
--- Quote from: "John Reuben aka "I killed Mathew" ---
--- Quote from: "Guest" ---Here's a quote from the link you provided, Whooter:
--- Quote from: "The Judge in the Aspen Case" ---There is evidence that NorthStar employees went through HIPAA training and took HIPAA quizzes prior to the disclosure at issue. Rose Aff., ¶ 4. This suggests the possibility that NorthStar may be a covered entity within the meaning of HIPAA.
--- End quote ---
Northstar gave HIPAA training to all of it's unlicensed therapy providers. They must think they are a covered entity. The court will decide this. HIPAA has nothing to do with individuals, only the facility.
--- End quote ---
One may think that and many would agree with you, but here is what the court says:
The court agrees with defendants (Aspen Education Group) that Harless's alleged disclosure of Matthew Pence's confessions to police was not an extreme transgression of the bounds of socially tolerable conduct. Matthew Pence's IIED claim therefore fails as a matter of law.[/i]
Court Records
--- End quote ---
You just make things up as yo go along, whooter. Anyone who can read can see that was not the finding.
Of note is the fact that the judge ruled Aspen Education Group was liable for Harless's actions not because it provides "treatment," but only because some of its employees took HIPPA classes.
Also of note is that Aspen Education Group's legal position is that it's employees are free to inform the law about the details of participant confessions; the individual therapists who do so are only individually responsible for acts of confidentiality breach, not aspen itself, not being a healthcare treatment provider, and all non licensed therapists are free of even individual accountability.
That puts a new spin on all those stipulated "confession letters," and all those public confessions of wrongdoing which non licensed personnel are privy to during the course of the "program" as they are free to be handed over to the authorities and legally used against participants at any moment.
Troll Control:
Whooter's "interpretation" of HIPAA is so astoundingly ignorant, one must wonder if he recently took a sever blow to the head. Let me educate you, Whooter. HIPAA covers facilities, not individuals. And any individual who works for the covered entity, from the janitor to the director is forbidden from disclosing anything that happens with any client of that facility. Get it now?
And so far as this lawsuit is concerned, the judge simply sated that if Aspen provides no treatment, then HIPAA doesn't apply. If that's the case, fine, disclose client information whenever you want. The problem is that this facility performed therapy with its clients and the therapists are not licensed. Providing therapy (or counseling) when unlicensed to do so is a crime, plain and simple. Like practicing medicine without a license. Same deal.
So we clearly see Aspen is guilty of at least one criminal/tortious action. They either provided therapy without a license to do so (a crime) or they were licensed and violated HIPAA (a tort). Either way, they're guilty as sin.
RMA Survivor:
Bingo! Well said.
Ursus:
Anybody know how this case turned out?
As I mentioned previously, whether it was this thread or one of the other ones discussing this case, I was unable to find any further mention of it despite extensive searching. The case as it stands right now, i.e., what has been posted, is a summary judgment requested by both parties in the hopes of foregoing a jury trial.
The judge ruled on two of the five claims. The remaining three are assumed to continue to a jury trial.
It's possible that this case is stashed in one of those pay-per-view or subscriber archives such as WestLaw. It's also possible that it hasn't come to trial yet. And it's also possible that Aspen may have offered some kind of settlement to prevent said damning issues from seeing any more light of day.
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