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Revision 25-3; Effective Oct. 29, 2025
All contracting agencies must comply with the U.S. Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) standards for protection of privacy.
An FPP provider must maintain all health care information as confidential to the extent required by law.
Grantees must make sure all employees and volunteers receive training about client confidentiality during orientation. Employees and volunteers also must understand that violation of the law about confidentiality may result in civil damages and criminal penalties. A health care provider’s paid and unpaid staff must be told during orientation of the importance of keeping client information confidential. Refer to 1 Texas Administrative Code (TAC) Section 382.125(c). Grantees must provide a confidentiality policy that makes sure staff are informed during orientation of the importance of keeping client information confidential. All employees, volunteers, subrecipients and advisory board members must sign a confidentiality statement during orientation.
Grantees must monitor client records to make sure only appropriate staff and HHSC may access the records. A grantee must document the person’s preferred method of follow-up for clinic services, such as by cell phone, email, work phone or text, as well as preferred language, in the client’s record. Each client must receive verbal assurance of confidentiality, an explanation of confidentiality, which means information is kept private and not shared without permission, and any applicable exceptions such as abuse reporting. Grantees must provide clients with a copy of their signed confidentiality policy or agreement and maintain a copy in client's record.
An FPP provider may not require consent for family planning services from the spouse of a married client. Refer to 1 TAC Section 382.125.
For information specific to minors and confidentiality, refer to Responsibilities for Treatment of Minors within the Family Planning Program and Healthy Texas Women Program (PDF).