HIPAA Privacy Rule

Ending with a Whimper

By Matt Fisher -The so far long and tangled path for tracking technology and HIPAA in healthcare appears it will end with a whimper. It is being reported that the federal Department of Health and Human Services dropped its appeal of the decision from the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas…

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More Delayed Access

By Matthew Fisher – The Office for Civil Rights continues to dig into reports about delayed access to records by covered entities. The initial flurry of resolutions from many years ago now has not necessarily resulted in a significant change of behavior, which is frankly a bit surprising.


Next Piece in Tracking Technology Puzzle

By Matt Fisher – The pieces to the puzzle that is the use of tracking technology in healthcare continue to accumulate. The most recent piece was a summary judgment decision from the Northern District of Texas stemming from a lawsuit filed by the American Hospital Association along with a couple of hospitals.


Supporting Information Privacy for Patients, Now and Always

By Micky Tripathi – ONC’s information blocking regulations consider applicable law, and that now includes the HIPAA Privacy Rule to Support Reproductive Health Care Privacy Final Rule. In short, complying with this new federal rule will not result in a determination of information blocking under ONC’s regulations.



A New Tracking Tech Wrinkle

By Matt Fisher – The latest volley in the tracking technology saga has now been sent up by the New York Attorney General. Specifically, the New York AG and New York Presbyterian, which is a large academic medical center system in New York, settled allegations about privacy violations stemming from NYP’s use of tracking tools.


Even a Pandemic Doesn’t Stop HIPAA

By Matt Fisher – Maintaining and protecting privacy for patients and healthcare information is important and necessary at all times. The requirement for keeping privacy applies no matter the circumstances, which can mean in the middle of a pandemic. The most recent HIPAA settlement announced by the Office for Civil Rights provides that reminder.



Don’t Post That

By Matt Fisher – Social media and healthcare can be a productive combination, but not when patient information is involved. The power and reach of social media are nothing new, nor is the concern about the ready ability to spread misinformation.