Health Information Compliance Alert
3 STRATEGIES FOR HIPAA PREPARATION IN CLINICAL LABS
PDF
While clinical labs may occupy a unique position under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act umbrella, their compliance efforts in certain ways mirror those of other covered entities. Our HIPAA experts offer the following strategies for labs ramping up compliance efforts with the HIPAA privacy rule:
HIPAA is not an IT problem,insists Michael Geldart, an attorney in Holland & Knight's St. Petersburg, FL office. And, "it's not a policy problem it's an operational issue," he says. So, it's time to figure out how your organization currently operates when it comes to information, he suggests. Geldart advises labs to track how they currently use information. Track how it comes in and how it goes out of your organization, he adds. Only when you have a precise map of the way information circulates can you understand what parts of HIPAA apply to your laboratory, he concludes. Gwen Hughes, professional practice manager for the American Health Information Man-agement Association, agrees. An information flowchart is the first thing AHIMA recommends that covered entities do, she says. Without that information you can't analyze the minimum necessary requirements and you can't determine how to train your workforce, she warns. The privacy officer can spearhead efforts to chart the paths of information in the lab, but make sure many people get to check it over and add to it. The HHS will need to finalize the proposed privacy rule changes by mid-October, Hughes concludes, in order to give covered entities the necessary 120 days to prepare for compliance. So provisions that may change because of these revisions are compliance hurdles you can tackle in November, she suggests.
Health Information Compliance Alert
- HIPAA Disclosures:
FEDS TO LIGHTEN ACCOUNTING BURDEN
Proposed amendments to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act look to lighten the burden [...] - HIPAA Privacy:
MARKETING CHANGES WORRY HIPAA ADVISORY PANEL
The National Committee on Vital and Health Statistics has weighed in on proposed changes to [...] - Clinical Labs:
CLINICAL LABS POSE UNIQUE HIPAA COMPLIANCE CHALLENGES
Clinical laboratories serve an unusual role in the health care system in many cases they [...] - HIPAA Tips:
3 STRATEGIES FOR HIPAA PREPARATION IN CLINICAL LABS
While clinical labs may occupy a unique position under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability [...] - Genetic Privacy:
GENETIC INFO LACKS PRIVACY PROTECTIONS
Knowing which rules to follow when it comes to keeping medical records is challenging enough, [...] - Temporary Employees:
THE TROUBLE WITH TEMPS
Temporary employees can save the day when business booms but if you don't know how [...] - HIPAA Privacy:
SAFETY FIRST FOR DOC GROUP HIPAA COMPLIANCE
The war cry for privacy officers everywhere should be "better safe than sorry," and at [...] - Authorizaitions:
5 AUTHORIZATION PERILS FOR PHYSICIAN PRACTICES
When it comes to authorization requirements, physician practices had better mind their p's and q's [...] - HIPAA Privacy:
18,000 CONTRACTS IS TOO MUCH TO ASK
While the Department of Health and Human Services' proposal to ease up on the consent [...] - Privacy Exceptions:
GRAND JURY SUBPOENA TRUMPS PATIENTS' PRIVACY RIGHTS
The Health Insurance Portability and Acountability Act doesn't necessarily protect a hospital's emergency department records [...] - Security:
FINAL SECURITY RULE EXPECTED SOON
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services expects to release its long-awaited Health Insurance Portability [...] - Identifier Standards:
EMPLOYER IDENTIFIER FINALIZED
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services crossed one of the less controversial items off [...] - Genetic Privacy:
RAILROAD PAYS FOR GENETIC TEST
Playing fast and loose with patient privacy can cause more than just Health Insurance Portability [...]