How Important Is It - Really?
By Dr. David Edward Marcinko MBA
By Matthew Pelletier [safety consultant]
The U.S. Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) is the federal law protecting the privacy and security of patients’ health information and was enacted in 1996. HIPAA laws also protect electronically communicated information. Understanding the significance and importance of HIPAA laws is vital to all medical and health organizations. Companies are required to follow HIPAA laws and protect patient privacy.
Share and Share Alike – NOT!
The privacy rule is an important aspect of HIPAA and makes it illegal for patient’s private health information to be shared by health professionals unless the patient consents. This encompasses patient information which is written, verbal or electronically communicated. Many health care and medical organizations use healthcare training videos in order to educate their workforce on the importance of patient privacy laws.
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Review
As the infographic above illustrates, patient privacy is very important and the cost in breach of privacy can be costly:
• With 60% of hospitals having a minimum of 2 breaches in privacy the cost per hospital is estimated at $2 billion dollars.
• The average number of records which are lost or stolen in each violation of privacy is 1,769.
• The main causes of electronic patient information breaches is due to employees, portable electronic devices and third-party errors.
• 7 out of 10 hospitals don’t view patient privacy as a priority though it costs them money if breached.
With 38% of hospitals choosing not to inform anyone of patient privacy breaches while over 40% of breaches are only reported by the patients themselves, HIPAA violations can result in being very costly to medical and healthcare organizations, not just hospitals. HIPAA training videos are a solution to help the workforce understand the importance of patient privacy laws.
Assessment
- Proposed Regulations on HIPAA Accounting of Disclosures
- The High Cost of HIPAA Violations
- Enter the HIPAA Fear Mongers
Conclusion
Your thoughts and comments on this ME-P are appreciated. And, are these issues a moral equivalency? Does privacy even exist anymore in an era of social media, the Internet, Google Earth and Google Maps, etc.
- N.Y. paper doubles down on gun owner shttp://www.wnd.com/2012/12/n-y-paper-doubles-down-on-gun-owners/
- Why can’t we publish list of women who get abortions http://www.wnd.com/2013/01/why-cant-we-publish-list-of-women-who-get-abortions/
- Threat to vets’ 2nd Amendment rights on hold http://www.wnd.com/2007/10/43889/
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Speaker: If you need a moderator or speaker for an upcoming event, Dr. David E. Marcinko; MBA – Publisher-in-Chief of the Medical Executive-Post – is available for seminar or speaking engagements. Contact: MarcinkoAdvisors@msn.com
Our Other Print Books and Related Information Sources:
Health Dictionary Series: http://www.springerpub.com/Search/marcinko
Practice Management: http://www.springerpub.com/product/9780826105752
Physician Financial Planning: http://www.jbpub.com/catalog/0763745790
Medical Risk Management: http://www.jbpub.com/catalog/9780763733421
Hospitals: http://www.crcpress.com/product/isbn/9781439879900
Filed under: Portfolio Management, Risk Management Tagged: | David E. Marcinko, HIPAA, Matthew Pelletier, Protecting Patient Privacy
CMS Delays Enforcing HIPAA Claims Standards
The CMS has rolled back by three months the date it will begin enforcing new standards that health plans, claims clearinghouses, providers, and others must meet when checking insurance eligibility and the status of healthcare claims electronically.
In making the announcement, the CMS said that the Jan. 1st, 2013 compliance deadline remains in place, but that enforcement won’t start until March 31. The rule affects hospitals, office-based physicians, health plans, claims clearinghouses, and all other “covered entities” under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act.
Source: Joseph Conn, Modern Healthcare [1/4/13]