Articles Tagged With: HIPAA
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HIPAA Risk Analysis Should Be Thorough And Helpful for Hospital’s Compliance
A risk analysis is fundamental to any HIPAA compliance program, but conducting one effectively can be a challenge. Too often, the risk analysis is a perfunctory task that lets you check off a requirement, when it should be a valuable tool that drives the rest of your compliance efforts.
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Caution: Patients’ Printed Records May Not Match the Electronic Health Record
Most plaintiffs’ attorneys now request audit trails immediately with the first contact for e-discovery, and risk managers often groan when they think of the work involved. However, there is a reason to seek the audit trail for your own benefit: It might show more exculpatory evidence than a paper printout of the same file.
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What Can Members of Patient Access Staff Disclose to Law Enforcement?
Jeffery Young, CHPA, CPP, president of the International Association for Healthcare Security & Safety, says a patient’s protected health information can be disclosed to law enforcement without the individual’s signed Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act authorization in these situations:
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Does HIPAA Apply in Disasters? Registrars Can Say More Than They Realize
A frantic woman runs up to an ED registrar after a mass shooting to ask, “Is my son here?” Many registrars believe that if they answer this simple question, it’s a violation of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. This belief isn’t correct, says Kirk J. Nahra, JD, an attorney specializing in healthcare compliance at Wiley Rein in Washington, DC.
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HIPAA Can Be Challenging with Dementia Patients
Patients with dementia may require special attention with regard to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, as they aren’t always able to communicate effectively or give permission for clinicians to talk to others about their healthcare.
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$750,000 Settlement Highlights Need for HIPAA Business Associate Agreements
Raleigh Orthopaedic Clinic of North Carolina has agreed to pay $750,000 to settle charges that it potentially violated the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act Privacy and Security Rules by failing to execute a business associate agreement prior to turning over protected health information of 17,300 patients to a potential business partner. The settlement includes a robust corrective action plan.
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Hospital to Pay $2.2 Million for Allowing Reality Show to Breach Privacy
In a scathing indictment of hospital collusion with reality television, the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights has reached a $2.2 million settlement with New York Presbyterian Hospital in New York City for what OCR says was the “egregious” disclosure of two patients’ protected health information to film crews and staff during the filming of “NY Med,” an ABC reality show featuring real-life trauma cases at the hospital.
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Round 2 of Audits for HIPAA Are Focusing on Business Associates
The Health and Human Services Office of Civil Rights announced recently that it is launching a second round of audits during 2016 to assess compliance with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, and this time, it is including business associates.
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Permitted uses of PHI explained in ONC blog
The Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology has launched a new four-part blog series to explain how the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act not only protects personal health information from misuse, but also allows health information to be accessed when it is needed for patient care.
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Decision on Lincare civil penalties should be a reminder of liability potential
The latest development in a Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act breach investigation should serve as a reminder that fines are not the only way the government can punish a healthcare institution for failing to protect patient information. Civil penalties are possible, and the courts are upholding their legality.