This week’s updates include payment changes for home health agencies and OIG’s 2015 work plan. Click the link above to read more about this week’s updates.
Privacy and information security programs in healthcare organizations have developed and matured to meet the requirements of HIPAA and other federal and state laws. In some organizations, providers and managers struggle to keep pace with the changes. Expanded focus on EHR technology and new threats to the security of personally identifiable information (e.g., healthcare, financial, educational, employment) will further affect privacy and information security programs in the future.
In an effort to make physicians more accountable for proper documentation, CMS has been doing the transmittal shuffle as of late--and the process may have you thoroughly confused.
Although numerous privacy and security laws apply to healthcare entities, HIPAA rules and requirements tend to receive the most emphasis?and generate the most angst. The terms HIPAA-compliant vendor, HIPAA cop, and HIPAA disciplinary action are anathema to experienced and serious privacy and information security professionals. HIPAA, as has been noted, represents the floor of requirements intended to protect the privacy and security of patient information. More stringent privacy requirements have existed at the state and national levels for several years before the HIPAA Privacy Rule was implemented (e.g., state medical records laws and requirements). Notably, many organizations implement policies and procedures that are more stringent than that required by HIPAA. Some of this is due to misinformation or misunderstanding of the HIPAA rules.
