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Understanding HIPAA - mlf

Posted: Jan 21, 2010

I am trying to get a grasp on understanding HIPAA. Does anyone have any suggestions where I can find "easy-to-understand" HIPAA rules? I have a doct that I type his documents in Word and print them to letterhead for him and then hand-deliver them myself to his office. Is this breaking HIPAA rules? I just need to know what I have to be doing to be HIPAA-compliant and not aware of the facts. Thanks for any input!

hipaa - kimba2

[ In Reply To ..]
I just bought a book by Stedman's called "Guide to HIPAA Privacy Rule" that is specificaly geared towards MT's. It's by Kathy Rockel, CMT, FAAMT. It's pretty new, so I had to get it from the company (Lippincott Williams & Wilkins)I'll say I haven't had the time, yet, to sit and go through it completely. It's not a huge book, about 116 pages, and it came with a cd, as well. It cost about $45.00 which I thought was kind of expensive, but it IS important stuff to know :)

Understanding HIPAA - mlf

[ In Reply To ..]
Thanks for the info! I'll have to check it out.

LOL! Ugh! - kimba2

[ In Reply To ..]
I just looked the book up on Amazon.com and they have used ones for $1.16!!!!! I paid $45.00!!! I looked there back when I was buying it, and they had none :( Oh well!

HIPAA laws are changing as of next month - Typin_away

[ In Reply To ..]
The laws are changing dramatically in the next month. I am in the process of taking a 6 week class on it. Look up HITECH Act, which is under the ARRA and is what the new law is called.

Understanding HIPAA - mlf

[ In Reply To ..]
Thanks for the info! I'm trying to get a grasp on this...

Oh to answer your question... - Typin_away

[ In Reply To ..]
If your files are saved on your computer and they are not encypted or you exchange these files over the internet not encrypted you are in violation. If the files can be seen by anyone but you or if someone steals them out of your car you are in violation.

Your boss must keep an audit trail, a log of sorts as to where, when, who has his patients medical and personal information at all times under the new law whether the files are sent electronically or not.

Some interesting examples of what is and is not a HIPAA breach - Janie

[ In Reply To ..]

I found the following document interesting. It lists actual examples of what is and is not considered a breach of HIPAA/HITECH.

Hope it gives you some insight into your particular situation. I think your only problem would be during the actual carrying of your documents to the doctor’s office. If someone were to steal the hard copy medical records or if you get into an accident and they fall out of the car, that would be a breach. Also, you should probably have a signed contract as to how the hard copy documents are delivered to the doctor’s office – are they just left on a counter or handed directly to one particular person who then takes responsibility for them. You may want to set up some type of “sign out” sheet that the person you hand the hard copies to has to sign every time you deliver as proof that they are not longer physically your responsibility and if that person misplaces or loses them or someone unauthorized reads or takes them, it cannot be said that you left them out in the open for someone unauthorized to have access to.

The direct link is below (it is in a Word document)

www.hipaacow.org/Docs/BreachNotificationPolicy0909.doc

If you cannot open it from the link above, you can go to the website first, and then link to the document.

http://www.hipaacow.org/Home/Home.aspx

The link is about five rows down: ARRA/HITECH Breach Notification Policy

just another job justification in my opinion, MTs have been - MTBucket

[ In Reply To ..]
doing this for years. you sign a statement when you take a job in MT of confidentiality. 18 years ago in my hospital job I saw an MT get fired on the spot for not only looking up but actually printing information regarding a celebrity. common sense.

this will just be another way to get rid of employees you don't like or want. more rules and hoops for the MT.

every single second personal confidential information is sent overseas to countries whose laws are not our laws and who really knows what happens with that, but because hospitals save money, they look the other way on that.

if you want to harass employees, however, here is another tool to terrify and control them. maybe a whole new set of QA rules can come out so they can continue to justify their jobs...it will be good for them.

jobs are so scarce in this country people are coming up with just about anything to survive.

when the jobs become more important than the people, especially the people they are supposedly protecting, you have a problem...

if this in ANY way would keep our jobs here in the US, I would be all for it; however, I think it is going to work the other way as evidenced by the greed already surrounding in and embedded in this so-called 'profession.'

Understanding HIPAA - mlf

[ In Reply To ..]
Thanks to everyone with your very helpful info! Hopefully I can understand now so I don't get in trouble for something a doc is telling me to do....

Am just not spasing, I am not in the what if class - L

[ In Reply To ..]
I am so not worried about this.

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