By Matt Fisher – At some point in time most group practices, hospitals or other provider organizations will receive a letter from the OCR. The letter will state that OCR received a complaint from a patient, employee or some other party with knowledge or information as to alleged acts at the healthcare organization.
Read More
By Matt Fisher – The Breach Barometer published monthly through the joint effort of Protenus and Databreaches.net provides a fair amount of insight into data breach happenings.
By Matt Fisher – The HHS Office for Civil Rights announced a $3.5 million settlement with Fresenius Medical Care Holdings, Inc. and five of its subsidiaries (collectively, Fresenius) following the report and investigation of five separate breach notifications.
By Matt Fisher – A $2.3 million HIPAA settlement by 21st Century Oncology from mid-December 2017 seemed to mostly fly under the radar. A combination of events seems to have helped push the low profile.
By Matt Fisher – The seemingly non-stop move from one natural disaster or health emergency to another places a significant strain on the healthcare system. Providers either cannot reach a facility, whether hospital or otherwise, or patients overwhelm a particular facility.
The American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA) announced a first-of-its kind standardized model Patient Request for Health Information form to help healthcare providers streamline patient health information request processes
By Matt Fisher – Healthcare entities have received another warning from the OCR concerning yet another aspect of HIPAA compliance. OCR’s settlement with St. Luke’s-Roosevelt Hospital Center focuses on controlling when and how PHI is released.
The ONC oversees health IT standards and policies, including secure health data exchange would face a 36 percent budget cut reducing its budget from $60 million to $38 million. Full-time staff would be cut from 188 employees to 162.
By Rita Bowen – As of September 30, 2013, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has received over 141,754 complaints. Over 24,500 of these led to OCR investigations, resulting in required changes to privacy practices, corrective actions or technical assistance.